Leverage
by spadetje
Summary: Chelsea-Leon fic. She's got something that Oberon wants...story takes place before the game. Finished.
1. Cheslea: Phandaria

**Story:** Leverage  
**Author:** spadetje  
**Rating:** PG  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of these characters or places. Tales of Destiny is Namco's.  
**A/N:** This is just some story I thought about off the top of my head...there wasn't any about Chelsea really, so I have one in Chelsea and Leon's perspective. She may be a bit OOC, but oh well. Thank you to my two reviewers :)  
  


**-Leverage-**  


  
  
Phandaria (Chapter 1) – Chelsea  
  
Chelsea Torn sung quietly to herself as she threw in the ingredients to the Beastmeat stew she was cooking for supper. She picked up a slab of cut up meat and tossed it into the boiling pot. Beast meat was common in the woods of Phandaria, so the residents of the cold country cooked Beastmeat stew often. She stirred the boiling pot of water and meat and felt the delicious aroma of the stew fill the kitchen. She was only fourteen, but she knew how to make a mean meal, since she'd been doing it all her life to help her grandfather out.   
  
She liked where she lived, even if she had to cater her old grandpa all the time. She enjoyed the forest and remote location. It allowed her to practice her archery and the solitude was satisfying—perhaps a bit lonely, though. Chelsea had a few friends, the kids her age from Janos, but she'd always have to travel so far to meet them. She hated traveling far into the woods, often she'd get lost. The young archer was not entirely alone at home anyway; she had her grandfather and Garr...   
  
She stopped humming and smiled when she thought of Garr—so incomparably perfect. Garr Kelvin, the son of King Sark Kelvin, acted as Chelsea's older brother…a fact that the girl resented, but also valued. Chelsea wondered when he would come home from the outside. She didn't know exactly where he was, but she imagined he was either visiting Janos or out hunting.  
  
She glanced out the window to her right, and watched the snow fall for a few seconds. It was so white, so pure, falling from the gray sky. She remembered a few years ago, one night she had left the cabin and went outside to stare up at the night sky. The snow was falling that night too, and she'd loved the colors…the gray, black and white mixing together. It reminded her of a picture she'd drawn, of the same scenario. She loved to draw, but couldn't find a lot of time to do so.  
  
Sprinkling on the final spices, Chelsea suddenly heard a loud crash from another room. She immediately stopped spicing, and hurried in to see what the ruckus was about. She entered the living room beside Garr's room and saw her grandfather Alba standing in a mixed pile of different bows, arrows and other archery material. He had the cleaning cloth in his hand, so Chelsea imagined he was in the middle of polishing and cleaning the weaponry.  
  
"Well, they fell." Alba stated obviously, looking around in what seemed to be honest shock, as if he had nothing to do with it.  
  
Chelsea signed inward and realized she would be the one cleaning up the mess. "Yes, I guess we had better clean this up before supper."  
  
She began cleaning, as Alba wandered off into another room of the house. She picked up the first bow, and the feeling of nostalgia came over her. It was a wood colored Flatbow, a very efficient and standard design, with a simple string tied at each end in a plaited loop to keep it secure and easy to pull back. It was large, and crafted well since it had served as her first real bow, for many years. She remembered how young she was when she had started archery.  
  
Looking around for the arrows that went with the bow, she saw sadly that they had been knocked over and spilled out on the floor. But they were Alba's famous arrows, the long and skillfully designed. They were recognized as her grandfather's because of the famous black feather fletching.  
  
She recalled her young childhood while she cleaned, remembering all the times she had gone with her grandfather to Janos, a small town at the edge of their country, and Heidelberg, the capital of Phandaria, to get more supplies. Alba was very respected as an archer, as well as herself. Even at the young age of six, she had already mastered her beginner's bow. They would go through the forever snowing cities and towns, selling their arrows and bows, and buying more feathers and such to create more archery weapons. And after they had gotten back to the cottage, they would go out in the woods with Garr and practice, and practice.  
  
The young girl smiled as she remembered when Garr Kelvin had come to her cottage. He'd only been fifteen—herself, seven—but asked for lessons on archery and ended up living with them out of convenience. He was the Prince of Phandaria, the eldest son of King Sark Kelvin, but his royalty played a small role on how he fit in with society. He acted as if he were another common citizen. When he came must have been about eight years ago, at least. Now he was like one of the family.  
  
Chelsea heard the wooden door of the cabin open and close, the noise snapping her out of her memory. She had just finished picking up the last arrow when someone entered the living room. She looked over too see a flash of silver as Garr nodded to her and hung up his bow. She could not say anything, but he turned to her to ask a question. All she could see was his deep blue eyes and tanned skin...it was strange, since it was so cold in Phandaria.  
  
"What happened to Master Alba?" Garr asked, his question pulling her out of her strange daze. He had been living with them for a long time, yet he insisted on calling her grandfather Master.  
  
She blinked hard. "Uh? Oh...well, he knocked over some archery...I had to clean it up." She replied, waving a hand to the newly organized shelves of bows and arrows.  
  
Garr nodded, and then grinned as he made a notion toward the kitchen. "That smells good. Another one of your famous Beastmeat Stews, hey? I caught a couple of beasts on my way back. I stored them in the shed, like always."  
  
They left the living room and walked to the kitchen as Garr spoke. He would usually hunt the meat of the night and bring it home for Chelsea to cook. They'd been doing that for years. "Speaking of which," Chelsea brought up, "we're low on meat right now. Perhaps after supper we should go out hunting..."  
  
As they walked into the kitchen Chelsea still felt the gust of cold wind that Garr had brought in with him when he'd come home. He noticed her shiver and threw a couple pieces of firewood on the blazing fire in the corner. Chelsea served out the stew, leaving some for her grandfather, and the two ate casually as Garr talked idly about his day in Janos. It was another relatively boring night.  
  
When they were satisfied, Chelsea went to her room on the left and retrieved her new bow, one she was very proud of. She still used the Flatbow design since she found it very efficient, and prepared plenty of arrows in her quiver. Her bow, she figured, was her closest friend. On days when she was sad, or angry, she would run into her room, slamming the door and talk to her bow. She'd never admit that to anyone, but found her bow's silent response comforting. She walked into the kitchen to find Garr already set to go.  
  
They left the cabin, and headed north where they usually had more luck. They trekked through the thick snow, avoiding pits and animal nests, to make it to their usual hunting area. It was a good spot, since there was a small river running through an open area where the deer and beasts liked to get a drink of clear mountain water, and all along the sides were great places to snipe from.  
  
She took her usual spot opposing Garr on the other side of the river. They had only been there a few minutes when they seen the first prey, a beefy looking dog-like beast. It was taking a sip from the river, like most of their prey did.  
  
Chelsea looked up to see Garr giving her the okay signal, and in which they both locked onto their target, aiming with each bow. Garr fired the first shot, nailing the victim in the upper arm. She heard the creature scream as the snow around it turned a shade of red. Chelsea followed with her partner's shot, hitting the beast in the back. It fell, and she watched Garr run out with his dagger to finish off the beast.  
"That was quick and easy," she heard the man mutter as he stabbed the dagger into the beast, killing it instantly.  
  
After he had killed the animal, the younger archer came out from her spot to help assist Garr take the carcass back to the cabin, where she would prepare it. They returned, and placed the to-be meal on the kitchen countertop, where the girl could prepare it for the ice shed properly.  
  
As she continued her usual task, they heard Alba call from the living room for only Garr. He excused himself and left in the direction of the elder man's main room. Chelsea found it strange that Alba would not come in the kitchen to talk, since he usually included Chelsea in just about anything the two men talked about. But, she did not eavesdrop since she knew it was probably none of her business.  
  
So she continued with the preparation of the meal. As she silently thought while sprinkling salt, she heard Alba and Garr enter the kitchen and sit at the table.  
  
"Chelsea?" her grandfather asked.  
  
She turned around. "Yes, grandpa?" she found it strange that they were both carrying solemn faces, when usually they had an amusing smile with them, over anything.  
  
"You must come here."  
  
So, Chelsea complied and sat in the chair between the two men. "Yes?" She asked, somewhat confused. She pulled at her red, messy hair.  
  
Alba hesitated for a second, looking at his granddaughter. Then he reached in his pocket and pulled out a chain with a charm at the end, which looked like a clear crystal, but it was only the size of a marble. It was very pretty, and she felt the need to stare at it, and hold it in her hands, as hers...  
  
Still keeping her eyes on the necklace, she asked her grandfather, "What is that?"  
  
"Well, it is lens energy compacted into a small charm," Garr answered for Alba. Lens... the energy source for the world. "A lot of lens energy...comparable to the Eye of Atamoni. Something like a paradox, if you look at the size of this amulet." Garr picked up the small charm and looked at it sadly.  
  
Chelsea looked at her two elders in curiosity, "Well, what are you going to do with it?"  
  
Alba set the amulet on the table and slid it over to Chelsea. "I need you to keep this safe. I know it is extremely dangerous, but we cannot let it fall into the hands of Dyre Langer..." the old man looked away. "He has been looking for this for a long time, and I know that man is evil."  
  
The young girl looked at Garr and Alba, "Who is Dyre Langer?"  
  
"A nutcase." The Prince replied. "He's of some high rank in the Seinegald Army, and lives in Darilsheid. I met him a few times before, and I've had a bad experience with him and that amulet. He suspects I have something to do with its location..."  
  
Chelsea nodded slowly, thinking if she remembered the name. She could not. "So all I have to do is keep it? That's no problem! But why can't you or Garr carry it?"  
  
"I would have given it to Garr, but since he is the eldest son of King Sark, and from his past experience with Langer I have reason to believe they will go after him once they realize that I do not have it. They know someone in Phandaria owns possession, and they will eventually find their way to me. They would not suspect you." Alba explained. "But if Langer ever gained control of this, there would be chaos."  
  
Chelsea thought about the situation. "What if they find me?" she asked nervously.  
  
"They won't," Garr confirmed confidently, "and if they ever did, I would protect you."  
  
Her eyes hit the floor and she blushed, mumbling a thank you. Usually Garr's comments like this had no effect on Chelsea, but lately it was different. She knew he meant it in all platonic sense, and she also knew that he was about nine years older than her, but it still made her flush.  
  
"I...don't think it would be wise to use up the life of the Prince of Phandaria over me, you know. I could take on the enemies with my Flatbow!" She looked up and saw that Garr and Alba were giving each other a knowing look.  
  
Alba gently put the powerful necklace over the youth's head. "I wouldn't worry about it anyway. Once you have this on you, it has a protecting 'spell' over it. If anyone but you tries to take it off, they will be killed." As Alba placed the amulet around her neck, the young archer felt a strange feeling go through her whole body, almost like a shock. She gasped, but then felt fine again. She picked up the glowing charm, and realized it really was very small despite it's amazing powers.  
  
"What else can it do?" She asked incredulously staring through it with her bright green eyes, seeing the cabin in a warped vision.  
  
"Many things...I wouldn't explain them, since you won't have to use them anyway." Garr stood up and walked over to the boiling stew. "But you must keep this away from Langer at all costs!"  
  
Chelsea looked over at the Prince of Phandaria and nodded. "I will, Garr..."  



	2. Leon: Darilsheid

**A/N: **Now we'll introduce our lovely other character. Enjoy.  
  
Darilsheid (Chapter 2) – Leon  
  
Leon Magnus pushed his way through the busy, gray streets of Darilsheid. Hundreds of people were moving around, many peddlers attempting to sell their worthless items, and all of this because of the upcoming promotion and ceremony. The promotion was for the new Master Swordsman of Seinegald, and the ceremony was for Darilsheid Army's hundred and fiftieth anniversary, an event that had been long waited for.  
  
Leon didn't really think it was a big deal. He'd been in the Darilsheid Army since he was about eight, and he knew exactly who was going to get the promotion. It wasn't a huge thing to him; it would just put him where he should be-- as Master Swordsman. He was only just sixteen, and he could use a sword like one of the Seven Generals. Better, really. It was an exceptional quality, and he used it to his advantage as much as possible. It got him places, ranks, things, and a to-be respectable name. Master Swordsman Lieutenant Leon Emilio Katrea-Gilchrist Magnus. There's a mouthful.  
  
He only had one competition, and that was Sergeant Langer, but he posed a very small threat. Leon remembered how in the pub that last night he'd heard Langer announce how sure he was getting the promotion. He'd made sure Leon had heard him, as it was almost a shout. Leon considered Sergeant Major Dyre Langer a moron for an adult. He acted purely on emotion, making silly coercive threats and personal affairs with people. The young swordsman knew Langer had only joined Darilsheid's Army as a way to prove to his friends and family that he could hold out in the military.  
  
The young swordsman walked quickly through the streets of the big city, and as he turned the block on which his home located, he felt someone grab his shoulder.  
  
He pushed the hand off, and turned to see Anatola Jostlyn, standing there grinning. "Hi!" She exclaimed, still overjoyed. He looked at her for a second, and then turned to leave, irritated—he wasn't in the mood to deal with her.  
  
Anatola was an ex-maid at his mansion, which loomed in front of him, and she was one of the people in this town that Leon found most irritating. Infatuated with him, she had worked at the mansion constantly…often visiting him, (giving him inane reasons to be in the same room with him) bothering him, and eventually spilling out her feelings. He supposed he could have been flattered by this obsession—she was very pretty, with long, dark blonde hair and friendly brown eyes—and he was, at first. But after her constant presence, her talking turning into love letters, and finally her confronting him one day in an illicit manner, she'd grown into a general annoyance. He did not share her feelings—it was a one sided craze.  
  
He knew she was from the poor side of town, and he didn't think much of her. After he'd complained to Hugo about her routing through his possessions—a reason still unknown to him—she had gotten fired. Leon had hoped that would get rid of her, that she would be angry with him, or anything. But she continued to approach him on the streets, or in the castle (she worked there now) and he'd continued to be just as mean to her as he had been in the mansion. Still, she wouldn't leave.  
  
"You can go now." He shot back to Anatola's greeting as he stepped up to his house.   
  
He heard her pursue him, and he hurried closer to the gate surrounding his home. "No, Leon wait—I need to talk to you!"  
  
In response, he pushed open the gate and slammed it into her face. "Go away." He turned and stepped inside the large house's courtyard. It was a beautiful sight, the grass neatly kept and cut with several apple trees planted around the edges of the house, giving the yard a cozy look. However, Leon knew it was far from cozy. The mansion itself loomed above all the other nearby houses and was a smaller version of the castle, really. It had two huge front doors, like Darilsheid Castle with the city's crest engraved on each.  
  
As the teenager opened the doors of the mansion he was greeted by a few decent maids who went about their own business. The inside was extraordinary; the design beautifully crafted and made out of only the best material. As he entered, he was brought in front of a large painting, the portrait of lady Chris Katrea...  
  
Leon looked away and continued through the mansion to his room. Along the way, he passed by an open door, which led to where Hugo Gilchrist stood, dressed in his regular black/gray/white outfit. Hugo was the president of Oberol Corporation, the manufacturers of lens that sold out products, and generating a source of energy for the world. Since this was the largest corporation in the world, Hugo lived in the largest city in the world, and in the largest house. Leon never referred to Hugo as his father; their father/son relationship was limited to business. Leon hated him.  
  
"Leon, you must get in your uniform. The practice for tomorrow's ceremony will begin in a few hours. We will go to the castle as soon as you are done." Hugo ordered. Leon nodded and continued to his room.  
  
He found his uniform there, pressed and cleaned from the maids and ready to wear. Chaltier was lying beside it...Leon had felt nervous without his Swordian, so as soon as he saw his only companion he picked him up and put Chaltier in his sheath, at the youth's waist.  
  
_Welcome back, young master._  
  
In a way, Leon was glad only he could hear the Swordian's voice. That way, he could confide in the sword and not worry about anything. He often wondered what it had been like, while Chaltier was alive...but that way before his time.  
  
"Hello, Chal," Leon replied as he got dressed for the practice. "I've got to do something about that Anatola girl. I could talk to Hugo about it, but he'd probably just tell me to deal with it, or have her killed." Leon stopped for a moment, wondering if that would be a good thing. "Well, anyway it will be an advantage to become Master Swordsman. I don't see why they are making a big fuss out of this occasion anyway. It's not like I've never been promoted before."  
  
Chaltier listened to his master in silence. "I guess Hugo will be fine with it. I imagine he made it positively sure I get the promotion. Not because he cares. Just so that I can be more useful in his work." Leon finished buttoning up the uniform and tucked his raven black hair into the beret.  
  
He sighed. It was true, Hugo was going to make sure Leon got this promotion only so that he could be in on the meeting with the other Seven Generals. So that whatever he was planning, he could use Leon to do that dirty work.  
  
Walking to the Castle with Hugo was very uneventful. He got many stares and hellos, but he ignored them both. They went north from the mansion to Darilsheid Castle, and entered the huge building. They continued up the stairs and into the Throne Room. In there, Hugo had a brief conversation with the King of Darilsheid and Leon was formally presented to the King of Seinegald, in which he acted just as Hugo had commanded he did.  
  
After he was presented, Hugo told Leon that he could go "talk to the other Generals and knights," which was another way of saying, "Go away." So, Leon left the Throne Room and wandered around the Castle. He had no intention on talking to the other competition, since they were all morons anyway. And he did not feel like getting in another pointless fight with Langer.  
  
So he left the Room, and headed to the left of the Castle. There, he went even further left and found himself on the edge connecting the East Tower to the main Castle. He stayed on the little bridge-type connection and looked out at the city. It was busier then usual, and all he could see was moving people over the bright sun. He was glad for the wind; it cooled him down from the heat of the thick green uniform.  
  
Leon glanced down at Chaltier. The Swordian had been quiet for the past while, but the kid didn't feel like speaking to him. He felt himself fall into his memories as he looked out at the city of Darilsheid, recalling what it was like back when he was a happy kid...the summer days with his mother, father, and sister. Before his father had turned into Hugo Gilchrist, while his mother was still alive...and before his sister left. Then he felt a horrible slash of pain inside of him as he remembered that night...when everything was lost. His mother, in a pool of blood. His sister, screaming. His father, and that dark sword...he was so young then. After that night, things had turned into the way they are now. His sister had left with a Swordian, and he never saw his mother again. Hugo had been ridiculously mean and terrible to Leon, until he saw that Chaltier had chosen his son. After that, he'd been indifferent to Leon, but the young child had figured it was better than being mean to him, so he went along with what Hugo told him to do.  
  
Now that he was older, he realized that he was just a tool in Hugo's plan...which he had yet to figure out. He didn't care much, though. Leon valued his life but only to a certain extent. And Hugo, in truth, was all he had left, even if he was evil and corrupted.   
  
The young Swordian Master sighed, and looked back out the city. It was way different now; full of Oberol shops and strange people he was not familiar with. He wondered where his sister was, and how she grew up. Perhaps that was the reason why he stayed conscious in this world.  
  
"Lieutenant Magnus!" The teenager turned his head to the left and glanced with his cold lavender eyes at who called him. It was General Ashley, his battle tutor. Leon arose from leaning against the stone wall and came to attention as the General approached.  
  
"Sir." He responded, staring straight ahead.  
  
General Ashley nodded and stood in front of him. "You're a good soldier, kid. We're going to go through the final practice in a few minutes. You had better get into the Throne Room and join the others."  
  
Leon nodded and replied, "Yes, sir." He waited for the General to give him an okay sign, and he exited toward the Throne Room.  
  
As he entered, he saw that he was not the last one there. Langer was missing from his spot. I should have figured, Leon thought. He's probably off bragging about how he's going to get my promotion. Leon took his spot and saw Hugo give him disapproved look at his tardiness.  
  
As he blended in with the rest of the corps, the King started on a speech about the true meaning of the promotion, and how it was not only the promotion of a brave and respected warrior, but also for the country Seinegald, and other sugar-coated meanings of giving a child more authority than a room full of people ten years older than him. While he was in the middle of this speech from the heart, the door opened and Sergeant Langer marched in.  
  
"Sergeant Major Langer..." The King addressed him with a subtle warning in his voice.  
  
Langer marched quickly to his spot, which was ironically, just to the left of Leon and spoke in a voice that seemed to be hiding his panic, "Your Majesty, please excuse me, I was in a difficult situation. Please understand!"  
  
The king looked down at the reckless Sergeant and sighed. "Do not let it happen again."  
  
And from there, he continued with his speech. Leon felt like rolling his eyes at the older Sergeant, wondering how he had ever became a Sergeant at all. How could he even expect to be thought of getting that promotion? He is a fool.  
  
The King finished the explanation and stood in front of his somewhat large Army. "And now to begin the Final Practice of the Ceremonial Promotion!"  
  



	3. Chelsea: Phandaria

**A/N: ** Do continue, it gets better.  
  
Phandaria (Chapter 3) – Chelsea  
  
  
Chelsea stuffed the last dry sheet the cabin had into the final pack. There. She had finished packing the three for the trip to Seinegald. There was the 150th anniversary for the capital of the country, Darilsheid, as well as a promotion, and Garr's father had requested that he go. So, Chelsea and Alba had decided to join him on the trip. She had only been to Darilsheid once or twice in her lifetime, and she was excited at the chance to go again. It would take them about a day to get there, since Seinegald was to the far north and they would have to go through a few towns to get there. Luckily they lived on the northern part of Phandaria, and Seinegald wasn't too far away.  
  
"Have we got everything?" Garr asked, picking up his pack.  
  
Chelsea nodded, and handed her grandfather his pack, as she took her own. "Well, let's go then." She grabbed her bow and arrows, and headed out the door along with the other two men. She fell behind a bit, and pulled the pendant from under her shirt and stared at it. It was so beautiful, one of the most amazing things she had ever seen. It was so ... pure looking.  
  
They set of south, through the path of the snowy forest that had been created mostly from Garr's numerous voyages. Chelsea was very glad she had her fur cape with her, or else she would have frozen to death at least. Phandaria was the coldest country in the world.  
  
They continued through these paths, avoiding the beasts and animals. They only had their compass and packs with them, but the three had traveled this way many times before so they were fine. They continued trekking through the snowy lands, but Chelsea fell a few feet behind, leaving her two seniors to talk ahead. While making her way around holes in the snow and thin ice coatings leading far down to the ground, she thought about that amulet. It was neat that she got to keep something of that importance safe, but she wanted to know exactly what this shiny thing could do. Garr and Alba would not tell her anything about it, and that bothered her a lot. She also wondered just who this Langer was, and why he wanted it so much. Perhaps it had the power of Atamoni? Garr had said it was comparable...and that was impressive itself; the Eye of Atamoni was the most powerful thing in the world. A gigantic piece of lens, about 20 feet in diameter with enough power to destroy the world. The people of this planet had named it after their goddess, Atamoni.  
  
She wished they would just tell her how to work the amulet, but they would just say if she knew she would try to use it. She knew she wouldn't, but that did not convince them. Perhaps she would find out, anyway.  
  
As she continued to sink deep in thought, she did not realize that the two ahead of her had stopped, and they had reached a clearing in the forest. She almost ran into them, but stopped and looked at what they were seeing. It was a lake, in the middle of the forest, but it was not frozen-- a strange occurrence in Phandaria's freezing woods. Chelsea could see the glimmering sun against the small waves.  
  
"Why is this not frozen?" Alba asked. He frowned and started to walk toward it.  
  
Garr followed him, "I don't know. It is strange...but we can refill our water containers here."  
  
Chelsea almost walked up to the edge of the lake as Garr and Alba chatted puzzlingly about this lake, and she heard the crunching of snow. It was very quiet, but the life of hunting and living in a wood trained her ears well. She could also hear a slight breathing, raspy like a beast. The young archer knew something was nearby, and she reached for her bow, quietly and quickly. Walking backwards, closer to the two men at the lake, she scanned the area around them repeatedly, searching for any clues to the animal's location.  
  
"Garr...Grandpa..." She warned, hearing them turn to look at her. Garr, being her hunting partner for years, knew what had happened and pulled his bow and arrows from his quiver. They formed into their regular hunting pose, back to back, and resumed scanning for the prey.  
  
They needed not to scan long. The beast, a skinny bear type animal crept up behind a rock, perhaps trying to hide itself unsuccessfully. It had black matted fur and was very skinny. Although it did not have a lot of weight, it was big...perhaps six or seven feet long, and looked quite agile. The beast had the face of a bear, and the paws, but its exact species was unknown to the archers.  
  
As they watched the creature in silence, Chelsea could see a good portion of it's back, and aimed her bow and arrow toward it. She shot her arrow, and it sailed through the air silently, and hit its target with excellent accuracy. The beast pounced up from its hiding spot at this stab of pain, and jumped toward the two archers with a screech. Chelsea had already pulled another arrow into her bow and her and Garr both shot at once, nailing the enemy on each side.  
  
It fell to the ground making pain filled noises, but arose on the back two legs, giving an intimidating stance. Garr and Chelsea were not scared, however. Both knew what to do, and they fired another two arrows, aiming directly at the creature's heart. Their weapons hit right on, and the beast fell to the ground, dying. After a few minutes it stopped moving, and they knew they had made the kill.  
  
After the defeat of the animal Chelsea had set up a fire using Garr's Sorcerer's Ring - it was a very handy item out in the cold, where it could shoot a line of heat using lens energy. Alba and Garr prepared the animal, and the girl began cooking.  
  
"Well Garr, do you actually care who will get the promotion?" Chelsea asked as she turned the cooking beast over the fire.  
  
The Prince thought for a second. "I never gave it much thought, so not really. But I heard Langer was in the possibilities, I just hope he does not receive something like that."  
  
Her grandfather spoke from over by the water, "I wouldn't worry about it; he won't get it."  
  
"You're probably right." Garr got up and walked toward the unfrozen pond, "I still don't understand why this is not frozen solid. Usually all the water around here is rock solid of ice. It's really suspicious."  
  
Alba turned to look at his younger housemate, "However, there is nothing we can do about it, I say we just leave it how it is..."  
  
After the fight and meal, the trip was uneventful until they reached Janos. It had only been several hours but they knew the trip to Harmentez would be longer but better, since there would be no snow.  
  
Janos was the border town between Phandaria and Seinegald. If you left to the north, you were in Seinegald, and leaving from the right put you back in Phandaria. It wasn't a big town, just something to give the two countries a borderline mark. There was no other way to get through each country unless you wanted to climb over tall glaciers and huge mountains.   
  
At Janos, the three rested up at the local cafe. After a short while, they refilled anything they would need for the trip north, and left Phandaria to traveled across the barren lands of Seinegald. This was somewhat new to Chelsea, although Garr and Alba didn't seem too impressed; they had traveled all over the world. Chelsea wondered if someday she would see Calvalese, a country where they described as so hot, it never snowed. The young archer found that hard to imagine, all her life there had been snow, snow, snow, and more snow.  
  
When they could just see the bit of Harmentez in the distance, it was beginning to get very dark. They hurried their pace, and made it into the town before everything closed. Harmentez was a small village really; it was a halfway mark between Janos and Darilsheid. The three archers found the Inn and stayed there for a night.  
  
When the morning came, Chelsea felt so tired. She'd been walking and excited all day yesterday, and she was beginning to feel the effects. But she knew that today the ceremony was on, and she'd also have to walk a long distance to get to Darilsheid. They woke up a little after the sun rose, and began traveling to Darilsheid again. That was also uneventful, since the savage animals and beasts were rare out in the plains of Seinegald.  
  
They made it to the capital city just before noon. It seemed like good timing, they had a few hours until the ceremony began. They found the Inn and booked a room for the night, where they stored all their stuff.  
  
After unloading her pack in her room, Chelsea went next door where Garr and her grandfather stayed. Garr was the only one in there; Alba had left to stock up on some supplies.  
  
"Garr." Chelsea said as she entered the room.  
  
He looked up from organizing his material, and greeted her with the same way. "Let's go in the city instead of waiting around here for Master Alba. Hmm?"   
  
Chelsea agreed, and they left together to the city. As they exited the Inn, skipping the bar of course, they found themselves in the center of Darilsheid. Tall, huge houses and shops covered the sky, countless people walking by, so many beggars and peddlers sitting on the sides of the road. This was all very new to Chelsea and she found it very interesting. The last time she had been in this big city was when she was about seven; she couldn't remember most of it.  
  
"I think we should tell my father that we are here." Garr said, and they went north towards the castle, passing by a huge mansion and a group of girls. The girls were standing in a circle by an arch near the bar, talking loudly and giggling. There was a man in the middle, wearing a military uniform so Chelsea guessed he was going to be in the ceremony.  
  
She opened her mouth to say something to the group, but Garr grabbed her arm and pulled her to the left of him where she could not talk to the group. Then he started walking quickly past them, ignoring the group completely.  
  
As they passed, Chelsea looked up at the young Prince. "What was that about?" She asked quietly.  
  
"That man is Sergeant Langer." Garr muttered, still looking forward. "It's better not to have anything to do with him."   
  
The younger archer nodded, and thanked her older companion for the advice. They reached the Castle, and headed inside having no problem with the guards since they knew who Garr was. When they got inside, Chelsea had to stop to look around. This was the first time she'd been inside Seinegald's main castle, and it was very impressive. She figured it was nicer than Heidelberg's Castle, where there, the small, closed windows always frozen with ice and covered in snow and the stone walls always cold and uninviting. Castles, she had thought, were meant to be warm and welcoming, since they held the country's leaders.  
  
But, unlike Garr's castle, this one had big, wide windows with stained glass windows full of artistic design. The stone walls had carvings in them that were so complex and beautiful. They stood on a royal red carpet, which led up some stairs, and probably to the Throne Room. Chelsea thought this was a real castle.  
  
The two went up the stairs and indeed into the Throne Room. In there was the King of Seinegald, King Sark, and a few other guards and soldiers. Garr and Chelsea ignored the other people and went up to the two Kings, who were sitting in two thrones. Garr's father sat beside two soldiers who seemed to be of importance.  
  
Garr stood in front of Darilsheid's King and saluted. Chelsea wondered if she should do the same; she'd never been taught acts of chivalry, even though she lived with a prince. She decided not to bow or salute…if they asked then she could blame it on ignorance.  
  
After the King returned the salute, Garr spoke, "Hello, Your Majesty."  
  
The King returned the greeting and then the King of Phandaria nodded, "I am glad you came today, son. The ceremony should start in a few hours." King Sark turned to the two soldiers beside him and gestured to the closest one, a middle aged man with black hair. "This is President Hugo of the Oberol Company, whom I'm sure you have met before."  
  
Garr nodded, and Chelsea searched through her memory, remembering a time when the man had visited their cabin. Hugo cleared his throat, "I have some business matters to discuss with you, Prince, but we will take care of that later. Who is this girl you have with you?"  
  
The Prince turned to Chelsea and introduced to all four figures of authority, "This is Master Alba's granddaughter, Chelsea Torn. She is a respectable archer."  
  
Chelsea curtsied, "I am pleased to be introduced to you all."  
  
Hugo smiled. It seemed a bit phony but she could tell he was somewhat impressed. "And this is our finest swordsman, Leon Magnus." He turned to the soldier standing beside him, who came to attention. He was young, maybe a few years older than Chelsea, and had these cold, almost evil lavender eyes that seemed to see the world through bitterness. She could tell he had black hair, since not all of it was under his military beret, and his face was complete with perfect ivory skin. He did not seem the friendly type, but she still respected him; he was the capital's finest swordsman at that young of an age.  
  
After the two introductions, Hugo seemed somewhat excited and said, "Well then! Garr, I wish to speak to you in private. We shall go to the conference room now." He seemed very ready to leave.  
  
"That's fine," Garr replied, and then turned to Chelsea. "I will only be a few minutes, wait for me in the castle."  
  
The Kings turned to Chelsea and Leon, "You two can make yourselves at home here." Seinegald invited, and Chelsea turned to the young swordsman beside her. She didn't really know if she could wander around the castle, so she followed him as he left the Throne Room.  
  
Once they got out of that room, Chelsea was surprised when Leon initiated the conversation. "So you're an archer." It was a statement and he seemed entirely bored and uninterested.  
  
She nodded, and touched her bow unconsciously. "Yes, I have been since I was a young child." They were walking in the direction where Chelsea figured was the mess hall, and as they walked, she noticed an impressive-looking sword at his waist. "That's some sword you have..." She commented, implying for him to talk about it.  
  
The young swordsman looked down at it and nodded. "That is Chaltier."   
  
She figured Chaltier was the name he had given his sword. That wasn't unusual; most of the knights named their sword, feeling a type of bond between the weapon and their self. She understood that—sometimes her bow, she realized, seemed to understand her.  
  
He unsheathed the sword, and Chelsea saw it was very powerful looking, with a very long and sharp blade. The handle was made of expensive looking metal, and was engraved with elaborate vines. In the center of the handle was a circular hole, which appeared to have a device locked into it. She wondered, but decided not to ask.  
  
As he re-sheathed the weapon, a knight came speeding down the hall, running wildly like a maniac. As he neared the two kids, Leon stood in front of him, blocking his way. But the knight turned and tried to get by Leon as fast as he could.  
  
Leon grabbed the knight's arm as he flew by. "Stop this! Keams, what's the matter with you?" He demanded coldly.  
  
"There's a beast down there, Lieutenant!" Keams shouted, pointing down to the end of the hall. "It's horrible!"  
  
The younger soldier's eyes flashed with anger as he pushed Keams into the wall. "What kind of a spineless pansy are you? You're a soldier!" He shoved him down the opposite way of the hall and began walking toward where the older knight had pointed. "And when you're a soldier, you fight."  
  
Chelsea pulled her bow from her quiver, along with an arrow and got ready to shoot. "That was strange," she commented on Keams.  
  
Leon pulled Chaltier from his waist, "Get used to it. This castle is full of morons."  
  
They continued down the hall and turned left, where the other soldier had came from, and at the end of the hall was indeed a beast. It was a dark green color, probably because it lived in the forests around Darilsheid. The creature was only about six feet long, which wasn't too big for a monster, but its face was the worst, with two black, beady eyes and lots of slobber everywhere and other disgusting material. It reminded her of a monster that roamed the area around Janos, one that she had only encountered a few times, and was grateful the creature didn't live near her house.  
  
Chelsea pulled back her arrow on her bow, and aimed for the creature's throat. While she was doing this, Leon quickly ran to the right and over to the left, giving the beast slashes with his sword while confusing it. She was surprised at his agility, but shot her arrow and speared the green beast on the right side, hearing it scream in pain from the attacks.  
  
Leon took this moment of pain to gash the animal several times, each time making it twist in agony. Chelsea fired another arrow, and the creature jolted on it's back. Leon jumped on top of it and made the final stab, piercing his sword through the beast's chest, killing it instantly. The girl was amazed at how brave he was to stand so close to the beast through the whole fight, but figured it was part of being a soldier.  
  
The boy pulled his sword out of the beast, and cleaned the blade off on his pants, then sheathed the sword. "Good." He looked at the mess in front of him and spat on the enemy.  
  
"I guess we should tell the King..." Chelsea suggested.  
  
Leon gave the creature a final kick, making sure it would not stir alive again. "Yes." He began walking down the hall toward the Throne Room.   
  
Chelsea quickly followed, catching up to the boy. "You are good in battle..." she complimented.  
  
Leon turned to her, and seemed to decide right then if she was worth his time. Then he frowned, reaching to her neck and picked up the amulet that Alba had given her. She gasped, it must have fell out of her shirt while in battle. "What is this?" He demanded, even though she could tell he already knew.  
  
"Nothing." She quickly grabbed the amulet from the boy's hands and hid it behind her shirt.  
  
"The Amulet of Atamoni?" He stared at her and frowned harder. "Why do you have it?"  
  
She looked back at him angrily, "I don't even know what that is." What if he was on that man Langer's side?  
  
"You do realize it was a foolish thing to bring that to Darilsheid, and especially this Castle," Leon warned. "I don't want it, but I know some people around here are looking for something like that..." he trailed off, thinking about something. Then he snapped back and snarled hotly, "Anyway, it's not my concern. It's your stupid fault if you get killed."  
  
She glared at him, angry that he knew about the amulet, and angry at his haughty attitude. "Let's talk to the King about this beast, okay?" She growled.  
  
"Fine." Leon walked ahead of her and entered the Room.  
  
Chelsea followed and as they walked inside, they saw that Hugo and Garr were finished their meeting and were parting. She was relieved to see Garr there, and felt save again.  
  
"Well, I guess we're done here." Garr concluded, and he began to walk out of the room. "I will attend the ceremony later along with Chelsea. We will see you all then." He walked by Chelsea, and she followed him. She figured Leon could tell the King about today's monster.  
  



	4. Leon: Darilsheid

**A/N: ** And now for some interesting, lovely, good old Action/Adventure.

Darilsheid (Chapter 4) – Leon  
  
  
Leon watched the young archer and the Prince exit the Throne Room. The girl was a good archer, but too naive. He turned to the Kings and Hugo and announced, "Your Majesties, there was a beast in the hallway beside the mess hall."  
  
The King of Darilsheid look astonished, "Really? I imagine you got rid of it."  
  
"Yes." Leon subconsciously put his hand on Chaltier as he remembered the battle. "All that's left are remains."  
  
The King nodded. "Good job. We will have someone clean that up shortly."  
  
"I believe we should figure out how this creature managed to get inside of the castle. And Corporal Keams showed acts of a coward…something that should be taken care of as well." Leon frowned, "Soldiers are not meant for the weak." Leon despised wimps; bravery was respected in his books.  
  
"You are correct, Lieutenant Magnus. Both problems will be taken care of."  
  
As they finished their discussion, the Throne Room door opened, and several Generals and soldiers entered. The promotion ceremony was going to begin soon, and the army was filing in to get ready. Leon joined them in his regular spot. To his surprise Langer was there on time, and his uniform was done up nicely.  
  
Langer seemed to notice Leon looking at him and he sneered, "Good luck, Magnus. You'll need it, you stupid kid."  
  
Leon gave him a pitiful look. Only an idiot would waste his time making moronic insults to a sixteen-year-old kid. He didn't bother say anything, figuring it would be a waste of energy. If only that fool knew he had such a low chance at getting the promotion over him.  
  
The King announced the occasion to make it final, and then called General Ashley to lead the ceremony. The General hollered out some basic drill, to get the corps warmed up, and then marched them outside. Leon marched alongside Langer, focusing on keeping in step rather than the Sergeant's constant smug looks. As they marched outside, Leon noticed just about everyone in the city was standing on the sidelines, and a bunch of decorations were displayed beside the marching route.  
  
The military group marched through Darilsheid's city in the organized way they had gone through yesterday, and finally reached the city square, where they stopped and formed up. Hundreds of people crowded around the sides, watching the beginning of the ceremony intently.  
  
General Ashley marched up in front of the corps, came to attention, ease, and then easy. Leon noted his perfect uniform, the uniform that he had always chosen as an example for his own. Ashley cleared his throat, and began the speech - loud and clear through a megaphone so that everyone around could hear. "Soldiers of the Darilsheid Army Corps! Today is a special day, as you all know. Today is the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary since Darilsheid's Army came into existence. Today, one hundred and fifty years ago, General Darilsheid created this army. And we shall never forget his courage and enthusiasm for our country, and ambition to create a defense to save Seinegald." He paused, letting the beginning sink into all the Soldiers minds.  
  
"And to honor this special occasion, the King and I have chosen a Soldier to be promoted, due to his remarkable work in the forces. In all his years serving the Darilsheid Army, he has grown and became an excellent swordsman. Therefore, he will be promoted to the rank of Master Swordsman." Ashley looked over at his corps proudly.  
  
Leon looked beside him to see Langer looking at General Ashley as though he were a god. He really thinks he's going to get it, doesn't he? Leon thought to himself, semi-amused. He wouldn't mind seeing the irritating Sergeant be proven wrong for once.  
  
The General began to speak again, going on about the many things this Soldier has done for the Kingdom, and all the hard work he put into what he does. Leon tuned out somewhat, even though it was all praise directed at him. He saw Hugo standing to the far right, watching the occasion with his arms crossed.  
  
The King of Darilsheid and General Ashley both went to the side to have a short talk. Then, the King picked up the Master Swordsman badge and walked in front of the corps. The crowed grew excited, wondering which Soldier would get the promotion. Even the soldiers in the platoons were anxious. Except Leon. He was stifling yawns, and found this whole ceremony quite boring.  
  
"I would like to give this promotion to..." The King trailed off, probably just for the drama.  
  
Leon felt a jab in his left side and turned to see Langer grinning with a smug grin. Leon returned a cold, uninterested glare. He saw the Sergeant mouth the words "you lose," and then snicker. The younger soldier just rolled his eyes.  
  
"...Our youngest member of the army, Lieutenant Leon Magnus!" The crowd cheered loudly as Leon marched up to the stage. As he passed by Langer, he finally got to give back a smug grin, but he was grinning at the state of shock the older soldier seemed to be in.   
  
He reached the stage and came to attention in front of the ruler of Seinegald. The King and Leon exchanged salutes and then Leon was handed his badge. He stepped back, saluted again, and marched back toward his position followed by loud, long cheers and applause. As he passed by Hugo, he saw the older man seemed happy and nodded to the boy as he passed. Leon continued on, without making any sign of joy. He didn't feel it. He did deserve the badge, since he was the best swordsman - comparable to the seven Generals, which was extraordinary considering his age - but it was just another rung on the rank ladder to him.  
  
As Leon went back to his position, he saw Langer staring straight ahead, not looking at anyone. Leon hid a smile, something he was good at, and continued to listen to the King speak to the people about the 150 years of Darilsheid. He sort of wanted to rub it in Langer's face that he did not "win" but figured it would be too much of a bother. And that would be acting like the foolish Sergeant anyway.  
  
The rest of the ceremony was relatively boring, after the corps had been dismissed. There was a reception, lots of food and drinks...many people had came up to Leon to congratulate him on the promotion. It got old very fast...the Master Swordsman was proud of his rank, but he hated how Hugo had hovered around him, sucking up a lot of the attention.  
  
When the reception was over, it was nearing dark. The ceremony had lasted all day and everyone seemed to be tired, so people began to leave and the clean up crews came out. Hugo was talking to a group of high-ranking officers, and Leon noticed Langer and a few other Soldiers were in there as well. He knew what they were talking about as soon as the President of the Oberol Corporation gestured for Leon to come over to him.  
  
Approaching the group Hugo greeted him with, "Hello, Leon...our new Master Swordsman. We're heading back to the mansion, and you will accompany us."  
  
Leon nodded, since there was no way he was allowed to decline. He wondered if the other people and soldiers saw how Hugo ordered him around. He dismissed the thought, uncaring and walked through the calmer streets of the city to their big house. Entering, the group headed to the door on the right, which brought them to Hugo's discussion room. A modern table sat in the middle of the room, several chairs attached to it. There was a kitchen type counter for coffee and other casual needs.  
  
They all sat down at the table, Hugo making sure Leon was to his left. The boy noticed Langer sat as far away from him as possible. He had been ignoring Leon ever since the promotion. However, the Sergeant initiated the discussion, "As we were conferring, we need to gain control of that amulet. It is of dire importance."  
  
Leon decided not to say anything about his experience with it today, so he kept his mouth shut. They often talked about this Amulet of Atamoni; it supposedly could do all these things, and would be a great help towards the manufacturing and keeping the monopoly in the Oberol Corporation.  
  
"We have confirmed that Garr does not own it now, but we have suspicion he knows where it is." Hugo reported, the other members nodding.  
  
One of the higher-ranking officers, General Leem, spoke up, "Perhaps we should keep him in Darilsheid, and pursue this clue. He is our only lead on this..."  
  
Another one nodded, "If we use...measures, I'm sure we can find out just where it is."  
  
Langer frowned. "We cannot be too rash. He is the Prince of Phandaria, after all. If the public found out we did anything to harm him, Oberol would be in great jeopardy."  
  
"What about that archer he lives with?" A figure of authority asked.  
  
Leon paid full attention at this part. Hugo looked at the General and rested his head in his hand, "Yes, Alba could know something about it. He's been around the area for a long time..." He thought for a second. "We will have to speak to Garr tomorrow morning. He's staying in the Velvet Inn, room 21 on the second floor."  
  
The boy was surprised how they knew this, but figured it was all part of being a president of a huge corporation and having lots of money. He tuned out for the rest of the meeting, and after the men had left, he started to head to his room but Hugo stopped him.  
  
"You don't know anything about the amulet, do you?" He asked his son. Leon looked at his face to see if he was suspicious, but he could not pick up anything.  
  
Leon stared back at Hugo coldly. I would never tell you, he thought bitterly. "No." He answered shortly.  
  
"You will come to the Castle tomorrow morning while we interrogate Garr." Hugo informed him.  
  
The Swordian Master had no choice, so he nodded and left. He was not interested in anything about this amulet. Seinegald held the Eye of Atamoni, Hugo was the president of the largest company in the world, and was probably the richest man, too...save royalty. He didn't see why they needed to get this amulet. However, he knew that nothing would change Hugo's mind, especially anything Leon said.  
  
He reached his room and entered, feeling the day's activities finally wear him out.  
  
_ Good job on your promotion, young master._  
  
Leon was startled by his Swordian's voice. He had remained silent all day, and Leon realized he'd almost forgotten about Chaltier. "Yeah... I guess I deserved it. Even if I would have gotten it anyway."  
  
He dressed for sleep in his silk pajamas, and then asked aloud to his sword. "Do you think I should have told Hugo about what I know?"  
  
_ I don't know. Whatever you feel is right, Leon..._  
  
He figured Chaltier would say something like that. "You were in the military, Chal...I guess you know how it feels." The Swordian did not say anything.  
  
Leon walked over to the window by his room, and stared outside. It was a peaceful not, not many people on the streets and a clear sky. He looked up to the sky, the black void that matched his own feelings, and wondered where sister was, and what she was doing.   
  
He placed Chaltier in his sheath and placed the sword beside his pillow, like he had done ever since he could remember. Leon climbed into his freshly changed and made sheets, and lie awake in bed. He slept rarely, and every night he sat in bed remembering all the good and bad times of his childhood, his past haunting him like an angry ghost. It was almost like Emilio Katrea hovered above his bed, constantly reminding him of everything he had left behind...  
  


* * *  


  
  
Darilsheid Castle's doors opened so loudly, making a brazen clang as they hit the walls on the inside. Leon entered, followed by two other Soldiers as they walked straight to the Throne Room. The King of Darilsheid knew what they were going to do, so he said nothing as the Master Swordsman and his two men exited to the left, toward the War Room. King Sark had left last night for Phandaria on a specialty boat, so there wasn't much to worry about.  
  
Leon and the two Soldiers made their way to the War Room, a room designated for anything military based. Discussions, assignments, materials, interrogations. They entered, and were met by a bunch of chairs followed by a platform. They would question the Prince in here, where no one could really hear them. The King did not know exactly what subject they were grilling the Prince on, but he let his military officers carry on their protected business.   
  
The three Soldiers waited in the room as they were ordered, for Hugo, Langer and their assemblage to return from the Inn. The wait was not that long; ten minutes, perhaps. They heard approaching footsteps and Garr's familiar voice. As the door opened, three guards came in, followed by Hugo and Langer, and then Garr, shouting angrily, along with many more guards. Obviously, the Prince did not feel like cooperating this morning.  
  
They dragged the struggling Garr through the room, and as he passed by Leon, they exchanged recognized looks, but Leon did not say anything. He was not on his father's side, and he wanted to save the knowledge he had. Garr took this as a good sign, and pretended he did not know the boy.  
  
He continued to struggle to get away, but the numerous guards pulled him up on the platform that served as the stage, where they threw him down in a chair. He immediately jumped up, furious at what they were doing, but the many guards stopped him. There was nothing the Prince could do right now, he was far outnumbered. They managed to tie him down, through a lot of struggling and arguing.  
  
"Release me at once!" He demanded, his anger overpowering his normal calm poseur.   
  
Langer stepped to the front where Garr narrowed his eyes into slits. "Sure, right after you tell us just where you put the Amulet of Atamoni."  
  
Leon saw Garr protest against the ropes that held him to the chair. "I don't know anything about that amulet." His voice sounded tedious, like he had said this many times before.  
  
Hugo stepped up beside Langer, holding a Long Sword in his right hand, as if threatening. "You will answer what we ask you. We know you know something about that charm, and all we want to know is who owns it. Then, we will let you go with no harm."  
  
Garr glowered at the blade. "You wouldn't dare...don't you realize who I am?"  
  
"We know who you are. We also know who you know." Hugo raised the sword and pointed it at Garr. "It will be much easier and less painful if you comply." The evil president of the Oberol Company touched the blade of the sword to Garr's neck and raised his chin with it. "I will ask you again...who has the Amulet of Atamoni?"  
  
"Even if I knew, I would never tell you." Garr's stubbornness would eventually get him killed soon, Leon knew. "Who are you, Hugo? I thought you were a decent man! Now I see you have teamed up with this lunatic, here..." he nodded toward Langer.  
  
He's got you there, Hugo, Leon thought. He leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. He would not contribute to this interrogation, rather just sit back and watch.  
  
Langer took an angry step forward, "I am not a lunatic! You will pay for that comment..." he snarled at the man in front of him.  
  
Hugo grew impatient, "If you will not tell us where the Amulet of Atamoni is, we will have to use harsher measures." He withdrew his sword and looked at King Sark's eldest son, watching his response.  
  
Garr looked at Hugo and Langer long and carefully. He seemed to savor the moment where they could do nothing; Leon knew that Garr was aware of what was in store for him. "You will never get anything out of me." He said each word with pure bitter hatred.  
  
Sergeant Langer stood up very straight, "Fine, if that's what you chose to do, so be it." He glanced at the well-built guard beside him and nodded.  
  
The guard walked forward to the prisoner tied in the chair. Garr looked up at the man, knowing what he was going to do. He braced himself as the guard's fist slammed into his stomach, hard, and he lurched forward in pain. "I don't care what you do to me; you'll never know--Ugh!" Garr received another blow in the same area, knocking him back in the chair.   
  
Langer seemed to be enjoying this, and stepped forward to join in. He punched the Prince hard across the jaw, forcing his head to fly to the left. "That's for your pitiful insult." He muttered. Leon saw a line of blood appear on Garr's lip as he turned back.  
  
Garr took punch after punch, bash after bash as the group pummeled him, hoping at any time he would give in. They kept it up for what seemed like ages to Leon, as he watched the young man get beaten up. But bravely, Garr never uttered a clue to the amulet's location.  
  
By this time, Langer and company was getting fed up with no results. And Garr was black and blue, bruises everywhere, blood covering his face, his silver hair messy and all in his face. His dark blue eyes were still angry and still alive, though. Langer and Hugo were getting very tired of this game.  
  
Hugo stepped up, seeming exhausted. He was getting irritated, landed a hard blow underneath Garr's jaw.  
  
"Where…" Another bloody punch, from the left.  
  
"Is…" This time, a powerful biff from the right.  
  
"The…" A double punch this time, from both ways.  
  
"AMULET?" And finally, as he yelled this last word, he jammed his fist into the Prince of Phandaria's gut, making him keel over as far as he could in the chair, moaning in pain.  
  
After regaining some strength, Garr savagely looked up at the Oberon President with two bloody, black eyes, and to everyone's surprise, laughed. "As I told you many times: I won't tell you!" He laughed harder, and fell back into the chair.  
  
Sergeant Langer pulled out his sword, and walked around to behind Garr. He pressed the knife against the Prince's throat, a final threat, and warned him in total anger, "This is your last chance, Prince...tell us where the damned amulet is, or you will be seeing a lot more of your blood than you have already!"  
  
Leon knew Langer would not kill the man, since the public would go into chaos if anything happened to their Prince. Well, he was pretty sure Langer wouldn't as he watched the Sergeant's eyes emanate an angry, almost crazy look in them...  



	5. Chelsea: Darilsheid

**A/N: ** I tried for some intensity in this chapter. Gotta love angst.

Darilsheid (Chapter 5) – Chelsea  
  
  
"Chelsea...it will...be alright." The young archer heard her grandfather speak. Although the words were hopeful, his positive attitude seemed forced. She did not think it would be all right.  
  
She'd awoken a bit later than she should have, and was awakened by a loud noise next door, which she realized later on, must have been the bow and arrow set that Alba had been using to fight against the guards. What had happened, was while Chelsea slept, Darilsheidan guards quietly entered Alba and Garr's room, where they had gained hostage of Garr. Alba had told her that they wanted to talk to him about that amulet, and he refused. So they forced him to go with them.  
  
After that, he explained, they had beaten up the old man. He was hurt badly, now...Chelsea was lucky to get him to Darilsheid's hospital in time. Even if it was a bad hospital - she looked around at the cracked walls and lack of assistance - it was better than nothing.  
  
"Where do you think they are?" Chelsea asked.  
  
Alba strained himself to sit up in the bed. "I don't know, but if I were you I would check the Castle..." He coughed loudly, and then continued. "However, you must never give up that amulet to anyone. Do not take it off, no matter what. I know that Garr will not confess to the location, so giving it up would be a huge waste...I don't think you can do this by yourself...I wish I could help you, but I can barely talk."  
  
Chelsea nodded. "It is alright, Grandpa. I will find someone to assist me, but first I need to go to the Castle."  
  
As she got up to leave, Alba called out to her, "Good luck, grandchild."  
  
She exited the hospital, and into the streets of the capital city. It looked like a normal day; everyone was going about his or her own business...there didn't appear to be anything wrong. She figured they would go about what they regularly do—buying apples, thinking they've got deals with the peddlers, not knowing that their southern country's Prince was somewhere near, held captive. It made her angry that these people, similar to the ones that Garr looked over, went on unnoticing or uncaring about an issue like this. If it were Phandaria, she thought, people would have known something was wrong. And they would have figured out what happened, and helped.  
  
But the citizens of Seinegald were not like Phandaria. They were busy and kept to themselves. She also didn't know anyone in the whole city, except her Grandfather and Garr. How could she know where to go? She could not leave the city either, since she had no clue on where to go.  
  
And where could she look? She didn't know anyone, and it had probably been too early for anyone to see the guards take the Prince anyway. She felt lost, and leaned against a building, trying to think of a solution. Her mind wandered to yesterday's event, maybe trying to keep herself calm, and she remembered how nice it had been. She was surprised that that swordsman Leon had gotten the promotion, even if she had heard a lot on his swordsmanship abilities.  
  
Wait a minute...she thought. I can ask Leon!  
  
She wasn't sure what she had thought about the young swordsman, as she looked up toward the castle in the distance, but she did respect him. He had a cold sense of authority around him, and in a way she felt proud that he had gotten promoted against all of those other, older men.  
  
Excited on her new lead, she started to run north, toward the huge castle with an objective in mind. She swallowed hard when she saw the number of guards outside, and the actual size of the whole thing. She'd never be able to search the whole castle, even if she looked all day...  
  
She ran up toward the front doors, expecting to be allowed in. She did not even make it past the expensive looking fountain when the guards grabbed her and started to pull her back. Chelsea had to realize that in the largest city in the world, they would have reinforced guards.  
  
"Let go of me! I need to go inside!" She yelled at them, angry.  
  
The guards dropped her in front of them, not letting her get by. "Who are you and why do you need to get inside?" The one on the right asked, sounding bored and monotonous.  
  
She stood up, insulted, and brushed off her clothing. "I am Chelsea Torn, granddaughter of Master Alba. I need to see Leon."  
  
The guards looked at each other one of them raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, yeah, every girl needs to see Leon."  
  
Chelsea's green eyes flashed with anger, and embarrassment, and she shouted, "It's not like that! I need to talk to him about important matters, which may concern the Prince of Phandaria's life. Let me through now!"  
  
"We haven't heard of you so we cannot let you in. You can turn back now." The guard said, returning to his original expression, ignoring anything else the girl might say.  
  
She was steaming angry, but there was nothing she could do. She was about to yell another furious protest, when the doors of the castle opened behind them. The guards turned around to see none other than the young Master Swordsman Lieutenant Leon Magnus, wearing his regular black pants and black shirt, scarlet cape flowing behind him. He walked down, complete with his messy black hair circling his pale, flawless face - fit with a stoic expression.  
  
"It's fine. Let her in; I heard what her matter is." He turned then, as the guards parted, allowing the girl inside. They did not apologize, however, which was sort of what Chelsea expected. She continued in the castle insulted, following Leon inside.  
  
She caught up to the boy once they got inside and stood in front of him. "Where is Garr?" She said, more of an order than a question.  
  
Leon glanced around cautiously, and then motioned for her to walk to the left. She made an impatient noise, and he muttered, "We can't talk out in the open here." He led her to a door far down the left hall. "We'll talk here. No one comes in this room."  
  
Chelsea hesitated on going into a vacant room alone with the sixteen year old boy. He did have a good point since she did not want everyone to hear her, but she didn't think it would be a good idea to go in a room alone...  
  
He rolled his eyes and sighed impatiently. "Are you going to go inside, or am I wasting my time?"  
  
She decided it would be okay, she did have her bow and arrows, and he was her only clue to where Garr was at the moment. She went inside, and Leon followed, closing the door. "What do you know about Garr's location?" She asked.  
  
They say down at a table, Chelsea figured this room must have been a small library once.  
  
"I know where he is, and what they did to him. I also know why they took him." She saw him look at her amulet.  
  
"You were there?" She glanced around the room, marveling at the display of ancient books. She wondered if there were books on archery.  
  
"At the interrogation. Don't worry; I didn't tell them anything about you."  
  
She breathed a sigh of relief at this. "Where is he then? And is he alright?"  
  
The worry spread over Chelsea's face as she saw Leon hesitate. "Garr is alive," he replied, then continued, looking at her amulet warily. "Do you even know what that is, and where it came from?"  
  
She pulled it out from her shirt and stared at it through the dim light of the room. "Not really, they would not even tell me what powers it holds."  
  
"Well..." Leon trailed off, thinking, "From what I heard, it's a piece of the Eye of Atamoni, that was removed centuries ago. I guess it has a lot of power, since so many are after it." He paused, reaching over and picking up the amulet, analyzing it in his hand. "It's strange how small this is, and yet they claim it could do some mean damage. I think the one's after it only want it for company profit. With the exception of Langer..."  
  
Chelsea backed away, putting the amulet back and looked away from Leon. "We have to find Garr!" She declared.  
  
"We?" Leon raised an eyebrow; Chelsea knew he was probably always conscious of being dragged into meaningless missions.  
  
"Yes, we. You need to help me, Leon. Please?"  
  
The boy sighed and looked over at the girl sitting across from him. "I see nothing I could gain from this pointless expedition. I don't care for the fate of that Prince, and I have things to do here...you know, being Master Swordsman eats up a bit of time." He said the last part dryly, then shifted in his chair and yawned rudely. "What am I getting out of joining you?"  
  
Chelsea frowned at the response she did not expect, "Well I'm sure Garr could pay you plenty, once this is over..."  
  
Leon set his head on the back of his chair, staring at the ceiling. "I've got plenty of money, being the s-" he stopped shortly, and Chelsea wondered if he'd almost slipped up on something. "Being the mansion my home." He finished his sentence quickly, bringing his head up and acting casually.  
  
She frowned, but her confusion turned to exasperation. "Leon, please! What do you want?" She then sighed, feeling tears come to her eyes. This boy was her only hope; the only one who knew where her Garr was, and if she didn't get to him fast enough...she didn't want to think about it.  
  
He thought for a while, and seemed to get lost in thought. She imagined he was planning what he would do, and she prayed it was to her advantage. Finally, he came out of his thoughts and sat straighter up in his chair. "Fine." The master swordsman answered, brushing the black hair out of his eyes. "I'll assist you. I have some business that needs to be taken care of when I'm there, that you need not to worry about." He stopped, tilting his head to the side as he looked at Chelsea. "To the north there are some old ruins of a town that no one lives in anymore, ever since the Aeth'er War destroyed it. But there's an abandoned Oberon shop in there that is still standing. They took him there."  
  
She sighed in relief, "Thank you...you don't know how important this is to me."  
  
Leon waved the gratitude off, "I'm only going with you out of convenience. You owe me for this, so you'll follow my order when we leave."   
  
Chelsea realized this was going to be a long and maddening trip with Leon along with her, but she had no other choice. She didn't think it would be too bad—he would probably be much nicer once she got to get to know him. She stood up, ready to leave the solitary room, still nervous about being alone with the boy.   
  
They left the room and went to leave, but Leon stopped and turned to the north. "You wait here, I have to inform my superiors that I will be leaving."  
  
So Chelsea stayed around waiting for him. In a short time he returned, and they set out for the abandoned shop. Leon wanted to stock up on some traveling material, so she joined the wiser soldier, glad that her pack was quite big. After their shopping, he also had to get something "essential" from his house, so she waited again while he ran into a huge mansion on the east side of town. The mansion, which she was very impressed by, was a great building, resembling the castle itself. She didn't have much time to gawk, though, because he returned quickly with that sword she had seen the day before.  
  
"What is that, anyway? I know it's a sword, but what does it do?" Chelsea asked, as they walked through the busy streets, heading west.  
  
Leon placed a hand on the sword as he spoke, "It's a Swordian...a sentient sword that has been around for years, ever since that Aeth'er War. Well, six important people that were included in that war had their mind transferred into these swords." He stopped for a second, seeming to realize whom the girl lived with and then said, "Perhaps you're familiar with them? I'm quite sure Garr owns possession of Igtenos..."  
  
Chelsea thought about that sword, Igtenos. Once, she had went with Garr to Heidelburg's Castle and he'd been looking at it. He had explained what the sword was, and what it did but she could barely recall or make sense of what he was saying—something about the wind. It had been a long time ago. However, she remembered what it looked like—long and ancient, with many old words etched into it…she had thought it looked like a ninja's blade.   
  
"Yes, Garr's father has it. I think he's going to give it to him once he gains position of being King."  
  
As they continued on west, Chelsea saw a girl walking towards them…she wasn't sure if she was coming to _ them_ or not, but her question was answered when she stood in front of their path, making them stop to talk to her. Chelsea turned to Leon and saw his expression crumble into annoyance.  
  
"Anatola…what do you want?"   
  
The girl, Chelsea thought, was very alive-looking. She had really long blonde hair—not as long as Chelsea's auburn, never been cut hair—but still very nice. Her eyes were brown and so energetic, as they darted all over the places, taking in the world at a highly vigorous sight.  
  
She smiled sweetly, then answered, "You!"  
  
Chelsea giggled at this; it was a new way of talking that seemed humorous to her. She saw Leon roll his eyes, then walk around Anatola, gesturing for Chelsea to follow. She did, but knew that girl, Anatola, would follow them both.  
  
She did catch up to them, and walked beside Leon. "So who's your girlfriend?" She asked, and Chelsea wondered if there was jealousy in Anatola's voice.  
  
"Not my girlfriend," Leon defended, glaring at her, "My colleague. We're on a mission, and it's confidential as well as important. You can go now."  
  
Chelsea was sort of impressed by being considered a colleague, but she didn't say anything. She heard Anatola sigh and as she left, "Well, alright. I'll be waiting for you, honey."  
  
The young archer grinned as she saw Leon cringe. "Friend of yours?" She giggled quietly, as the boy scowled.  
  
"No. I don't have friends."  
  
Chelsea figured he'd say that. She noticed they were getting further away from the city, there were less and less houses appearing. She watched him glance around, maybe looking for a key point to tell them where they were, and then switched the direction to the right, where he said would bring them north—toward the ruins.  
  
"This should be an uneventful trip," Leon stated, probably from previous experience. "Nothing dangerous lives around here, because the land is so dull. We should not have any problems."  
  
They began to get further and further away from civilization, Leon consistently checking his compass and comparing it to the map, making sure they were on track. Chelsea kept the lookout for any hostile threats that could surround them. As they walked on, she understood it would be a few days before they reached this shop the way Leon was frowning at the map, muttering little things like, "stupid scale..." and, "I knew it seemed too short."   
  
She didn't ask him any questions though, since she knew he would snap at her, but instead waited for him to inform her. Which he did, reporting that they would get there by the next evening. She had nodded, glad that they'd brought sleeping material.  
  
So from then on, they knew their destination. Chelsea began thinking about her silver-haired friend, wondering what was happening to him. She thought about what him and Alba had said to her, and wondered if she was doing the right thing. If she barged into the place and got caught, the group of bandits would probably kill Garr, Leon and herself then gain power of the Amulet. She was afraid of that, but she couldn't just wait around doing nothing. They were going to kill him...  
  
She realized she was falling behind, and hurried to catch up to the older teenager. As she caught up, she saw him staring off into what seemed deep in thought. His expression looked really sad, almost troubled...it was weird to see this since he usually had a sneer or a bored look on. She felt...concerned.   
  
"Leon?"  
  
He broke out of his little trance, and turned to her, visage back to normal. "What?" He snapped, with annoyance clear in the tone of his low voice.  
  
"Nothing...you just looked a bit weird..." Chelsea trailed off, nervous at the hostile response. "What's your problem, anyway...?"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
The girl had to put more enthusiasm into her pace to keep up with Leon, finding herself falling back every few seconds. "Oh, you know... your whole attitude toward everyone. Why do you hate the world so much?"  
  
Leon stopped and glared at the fourteen-year-old. "I've come to learn not to trust anyone. It's better that way in the end."  
  
Chelsea stopped as well; putting her hands on her hips and pouted, "Oh, come on. I'm sure you trust someone—you have to! And I don't see anything wrong with it. I trust a lot of people."  
  
The boy snorted and crossed his arms, "Yeah, and that makes you a naive kid. You wouldn't understand anything even if I did tell you. Let's continue." He started walking again, but Chelsea ran up to him, standing in front of him.  
  
"Whom are you going after?" She asked skeptically, eying the sixteen-year-old suspiciously.  
  
He stopped again, looking directly into her eyes, probably trying to see if she knew anything. "Who says I'm going after someone? I need to take care of some business that is none of your concern."  
  
Chelsea sighed, blowing the air up, causing the strands of hair in her face to fly everywhere. "Well then, let's keep going if you are going to be a stubborn brat." She turned around and started walking, knowing very well she wasn't going to get away with that comment.  
  
As soon as she took a few steps, she heard his footsteps and then felt him grab her arm and turn her around. She spun around and was staring at Leon's angry lavender eyes. "Don't make any more comments like that, you stupid girl."  
  
She was a bit surprised at his amount of anger, but she just rolled her eyes and struggled to get out of his strong grasp. "Let go of me, then!"  
  
He let her go, pushing her northwest as he walked in front of her. "Don't forget that I have the authority here. I can go back whenever I want to, and I also have the power to kill you in a single movement." He continued walking, and Chelsea had no choice but to follow.  
  
The girl was very unhappy at the facts, but she had to realize they were true. She was under order of him since he was her only hope. She hated to be in this position, and she also knew he did not care about her fate. Whatever or whomever he was after was his main concern.  
  
They continued walking, talking about other things...she did most of the talking since Leon wouldn't talk about himself except for his Army life. She tried to get him to talk, since she was genuinely interested in the boy's life, but he chose not to. They walked all day until the sun disappeared behind the plain horizon. She found the sunset very pretty, but Leon didn't seem to care much. Seem to, anyway. She knew he was capable of feeling positive emotions.  
  
As nightfall came, the two teenagers decided to camp out. They were lucky it was good weather, nice and dry and not much to bother them. The two set up their camp easily, building a fireplace and cooking some pre-readied supper they had brought along.   
  
They ate their supper in silence, sitting by the burning fire...just staring into the burning flames. Leon had got plenty of firewood, enough to last the night. While Chelsea stared into the orange flame, she wondered where Garr was now...if he was alive, and if he was all right. Not beaten senseless or brainwashed.  
  
And all this mess is because of this stupid amulet, she thought angrily, pulling it out form her shirt again. She glared at it, but also marveled at the extreme beauty of the lens charm. The fire reflecting off of it gave it a yellowish orange, flame-ball image...it was a very astonishing sight. She was appalled at how ironic the situations were. This beautiful amulet causing such disasters. This small charm holding enormous amounts of power. This long journey to end up getting her killed. This bratty kid causing so much confusion in her heart.  
  
_ What?_ She thought. _ Where did that come from?_ She frowned, looking over at Leon. He had finished his meal, and was lying down...probably had dozed off to sleep already. His eyes were closed anyway, and he was lying in a sleeping position - on his stomach, arms curled around his head. The shadows of the burning fire flickered on his adorable face. That was ironic too; his shock of messy jet-black hair with his flawless, almost perfectly smooth complexion. She closed her eyes, too, feeling the exhaustion of the days exercise. This world was full or irony. The good and the bad working together; the small and the big intertwining. The planet was one huge goddamn paradox.  
  
She glanced at Leon's sword, Chaltier. The boy had mentioned that he could communicate with it, that it was alive - an imprint of some famous warrior's mind - from the ancient times. However, he also said only Swordian Masters could hear the sword speak, so she didn't know if she believed him or not. She'd have to ask Garr.  
  
Garr...Leon...she felt a breeze fly over their campfire as she sat there, awake, on guard, and felt entirely helpless. She had the best swordsman on the whole Prime Continent with her, and they were after the Prince of Phandaria, but she was still just a kid. She relied on the help of others, and that made her very angry. Angry at herself. At the world. At the ironies. At Leon.  
  
Leon. No, not just Leon—Master Swordsman Leon Magnus, she thought sarcastically. He was a total arrogant twit. Any feelings she may have had about him were turned into anger, as she watched the boy sleep. _ Not so powerful now, are you? _ She thought, feeling fury creep up to her._ I could kill you right now!_  
  
She grabbed her bow and picked up and arrow. Aiming it at the sleeping teenager, she laughed into the night as she felt the power of having someone's life...someone's future depend on you. Chelsea pulled back on the bowstring and prepared to shoot the older teenager, the feeling of authority taking over her usual reasonable mind. HA! What are you gonna do now, you stupid little punk?  
  
She was just about to let go of the arrow, when her normal mind snapped back into her, and she managed to pull her arm to the left, shooting the arrow into the burning fire. _ What did I...what was I - What am I doing!?_ She was horrified at herself, and threw the bow behind her. She watched the arrow that almost killed her companion burn in the dying fire. It caught easily, spreading up from the sharp wooden edge to her grandfather's famous black fletching, the feathers burning hungrily, as if the fire was holding onto it's only source of life.  
  
_ I can't believe I almost...killed someone...out of what? Anger? Jealousy? ...Fear?_  
  
The young girl set her head in her hands, covering her eyes with her palms. _ Oh, Atamoni...please help me. I have a piece of you by my heart._ She grabbed the amulet with one hand, as if for comfort, while she looked up into the moonlit sky for a long time. She began to feel cold, and realized the fire was slowly burning out. Chelsea took her eyes away from the sky and focused on the red embers of the former blaze. Once it was so big, a burning inferno, but now...just glowing coals.  



	6. Leon: North of Darilsheid

**A/N: ** How did you like that!  
  
North of Darilsheid (Chapter 6) – Leon  
  
  
Leon threw another piece of firewood onto the small fire. Chelsea had let it go out while he rested, but he'd managed to get it started again...a very irritating thing to do. He looked over at her - still sleeping.   
  
At least one of us got some rest. Leon had not fallen asleep; he hated the second watch because he could never get to sleep at first, and then had to stay awake when he finally felt tired. He looked over toward the horizon and saw the sky was beginning to get a lighter shade of blue. The sun would rise soon, and they'd have to start walking again.  
  
Spitting into the new fire, he looked over at his Swordian. "Why couldn't I kill him that night?" He asked Chaltier, not really expecting an answer. And why didn't he? The night...when Hugo had killed his mother...he was young then, too young really. Perhaps that's why.  
  
_ I cannot answer that, young master._  
  
He sighed; lying down on his blanket as he thought about what would happen once they got to the shop. Langer and his group had left shortly after the Sergeant had threatened Garr with his life. They were going to the shop to get some key or something to activate the main Oberon facility, which was located in the woods of Phandaria underwater. Leon had never been there, and he had no real interest in this whole amulet search so he had stayed home at the Castle. Langer was taking control of the mission anyway, and becoming a bit crazy.   
  
The reason he was going with that girl was because the King had asked him to investigate, seeing that his soldiers had left without his permission. But also because the King had said he could take any measures needed. He could kill anyone, in other words...Leon had been thinking about his fate, realizing that Hugo was beginning to get really weird, always talking about his disgust for the world. How it could be so much better if only he could control it. Leon didn't think the man would to try to get in the King's position, but probably had other ideas in his evil mind.   
  
Ever since he decided to collect those damn swords...Leon growled when he thought about it. His life had been fine as an infant, but once Hugo had gained possession of that evil sword, he'd changed. He knew Hugo was conjuring up a plan to fulfill whatever crazy ideas he had. And he knew the President was very capable of doing anything...nothing would persuade him to do anything he didn't want. Not even his own wife...Leon felt a serge of anger come over him as he remembered his mother. She didn't deserve the fate she received. Neither did his sister...anyone that was affected by Hugo's inhumane mind. And his plans...the boy figured once Hugo got the Amulet of Atamoni, he'd be one step closer to getting where he wanted to be. And since he was the President of the biggest corporation, people were jumping to be his minions.  
  
Leon sighed. If only I could kill him, everything would be fine. But would he? He knew he was capable, but even though he had so much hatred for his father, he just could not ever muster up the courage to actually do it. Hugo was the only thing the teenager had left...the only relative.  
  
He looked over to the skyline again, and saw that the sun was beginning to come up. He watched it for a few seconds, seeing the ball of fire make it's way out of the trees...inch by inch it slowly crawled up, spilling light over the vast area of Seinegald. As soon as it was fully up, he stretched and turned to wake up his companion—but then stopped. He hadn't fallen asleep at all that night, and he had witnessed her go deep in thought, then take her bow and point it at him. He found that very disturbing, even though he knew if she shot he could have moved...he wondered if she was crazy too?  
  
He hadn't fallen asleep after that for sure. But he decided it was a late night thing; and let it go. He wouldn't talk to her about it; he understood random feelings of anger. Leon walked over to her and hesitated. He didn't know why...he knocked himself out of it and shook the girl. She rolled over, looking up at him groggily. "Hello..." she mumbled and sat up.  
  
"We'll go now." Leon had already begun packing his sleep material into their pack.  
  
He heard her yawn and stretch, then get up. He finished packing and went over to the fire, keeping up the usual morning small talk and throwing dirt over top of their campfire, spreading out the ashes. He didn't really want anyone to know they had been there, just in case anyone was around. He turned back to the girl and saw she had already packed both of their stuff into the bag. He approved of this, and then picked up the map and compass, figuring out their exact location.  
  
As soon as they started to walk again, Leon saw something in the distance. It seemed to be moving, and as it neared closer he could see it was a person on a horse. Quickly, he turned his head to Chelsea, "Go hide in the woods over there, just until I find out whom that is."  
  
She nodded, and ran off to the right. Leon walked ahead casually, pretending he was your normal traveler. The man on the horse drew nearer, and the swordsman saw that it was General Isard, one of the Seven Generals. He looked injured, bloody and battered and stopped as he got near Leon.  
  
Isard halted his horse, which was wheezing horribly and looked down at that boy in relief. "Leon!"  
  
"General! What has happened?"  
  
Isard patted his gagging horse and coughed loudly. "It's Langer...he's gone mad! His greed fer' that amulet has overpowered 'im, I'm afraid. We couldn't do nothin', he's left back there with Vims, Melina, and Hugo. Oh, and of course Garr. I managed to escape, and I'm gonna head back to the King fer' reinforcements."  
  
Leon growled angrily at this news. "How far is it from here?"  
  
"Ah, you'll make it in a few hours if yer' walkin'."  
  
The young boy nodded and then watched the General ride off. Soon after the man was gone, Chelsea came out from the woods, running up to Leon. "Who was it?" She asked, catching her breath.  
  
Leon continued to walk forward, "It was one of the Generals. I guess Langer went crazy...looking for that amulet of yours." The sixteen-year-old glanced back at the girl behind him. "Walk faster. We must get there sooner."  
  
He heard her mutter something, but let it go. They walked ahead for about three hours when they saw the building in the distance. As they neared it, Leon saw it was bigger than the last time he'd been here. The building was old, since it had not been used for a few years and was built about thirty years ago. Made out of stone, it resembled his mansion with the same two doors in the front with Darilsheid's crest engraved on them.  
  
The two approached the old store and Leon could hear shouting voices from inside. He guided his partner and himself around the side of the aged building, sneaking near the side entrance where no one could hear or see them.  
  
"It's kind of shabby considering it's an elite Oberon building." He heard Chelsea mutter dryly from behind him.  
  
"Shh!"  
  
Leon crept up to the door, feeling Chelsea follow him and looked in the inside. He could see a long hall with little sections breaking off from it. It was probably a storage room, since there were a lot of empty crates. He noted a door on the right side near the end; probably where Garr and the others were. He looked at the door in front of him; seeing it was quite thick and heavy...it would make a loud noise if he were to open it.   
  
There's got to be another way in...He looked around, but couldn't see anything from this side. He did not want to walk around the building, since it may attract attention where there were windows.  
  
As he thought of a plan, he felt someone grab his shoulder and turn him around. It was Chelsea, looking at him curiously. "What are we going to do?"   
  
"That's what I'm trying to figure out!" He snarled. The fatigue from having no sleep was catching up with him, and he felt more irritable than usual.  
  
"I have a plan..."  
  
"Would you shut up for a minute?"  
  
He saw her frown angrily and then step close in front of him. "I said I have a plan, bright one!"  
  
Leon growled and stepped back, uncomfortable about being that close to anyone. "Fine, what's your moronic plan?" He asked, only out of amusement to see what the younger girl's idea was.  
  
"Why don't we go inside?"  
  
The boy rolled his eyes. He figured as much. "Obviously if we open that door it will cause a loud noise, disrupting the peace and creating general chaos. We might die."  
  
Chelsea glanced around as did Leon, and then both of their eyes landed on the window that was to the northeast of the door. Chelsea walked over to it, and looked up. "We can try this..."  
  
Leon stepped up beside her. "It may work. It will have to do, anyway." He took Chaltier from his waist and quietly asked the Swordian to create a flame around the blade. Chaltier complied, and Leon pushed the heated blade in the glass of the window, and cut a decent sized hole in it. He put away his sword and looked at Chelsea. "I will go first and then you follow."  
  
He easily climbed through the hole since he'd had previous experience with tricky situations similar to this in his years of the military. As he got in, he could hear the voice of Langer in the room down the hall. The hallway they were in now was very dusty and dark, and Leon resisted the urge to cough and sneeze. He turned back to the window and saw the younger girl struggling to get in, since she was too short.  
  
"Give me your hands." He grabbed onto them, and lifted her up to the window; she was heavier than he thought. But he had wielded far heavier things, and easily pulled the girl through the open window.  
  
They reached the room at the end, and to their luck there was a window on the door so that they could look inside. Leon cautiously peered inside and saw Langer, and the other two Generals at a table, arguing profusely. Garr was sitting in the corner, looking beaten, his face marred by bruises and cuts. He was alive, though, looking around wearily.   
  
Leon focused his attention to what the two Generals were arguing about. He couldn't hear them too well, but he picked out a familiar name, one he had heard Hugo mention many times at meetings. "...Mumble, amulet... mumble, Lydon knows." Lydon Bernhardt? He remembered the priest; he'd met him once in Calvalese. Leon strained to hear more, wondering where Hugo was, but felt a tug at his sleeve.  
  
Annoyed, Leon stepped away from the door, and looked at Chelsea, whose eyes held the obvious question. "He's alive and in there," Leon whispered, seeing relief smother her green eyes. "But so is Langer, Melina and Vims." He then witnessed disappointment cloud the relief.  
  
Suddenly, a noise broke the silence, and they both gasped when they heard the door being opened. Leon grabbed Chelsea quickly and pushed her in one of the sections that broke off from the hall. There were a bunch of boxes and crates in the little room, so he pushed her behind a stack and stepped in beside her. It was a bit weird since he had to press close against her, but neither of them said anything since they were too pre-occupied wondering if whoever had left the room heard them.  
  
The boy heard a pair of hasty footsteps and a female voice mumble something. He imagined it was General Melina, probably with General Vims. He strained to listen to any other clues, but could only hear silence. The two Generals had probably stopped, then Leon could hear them talking.  
  
"Vims, we'd better get out of here before that man goes crazy..."  
  
"Yeah, you saw what he did to Isard...Holy Atamoni, that was uncalled for. The poor guy."  
  
There was a brief silence. "Hey-- what's this?"  
  
"Don't know. Looks like an arrow. This wasn't here before."  
  
Leon heard Chelsea gasp from beside him. He turned to her, looking at her questioningly. She whispered very silently, "I must have dropped one!" He heard a lot of panic in her voice, and hushed her.  
  
"Hmm... Black feathers...that's Alba's arrow." Melina sounded really suspicious, and Leon cursed softly under his breath.  
  
"Is someone here?"  
  
"Couldn't tell ya. Let's check it out." The sixteen-year-old reached for his sword as he heard General Vims searching behind other section's boxes. He waited, figuring keeping silent and waiting for the last second would be the wisest thing to do. Chelsea was squirming beside him out of fear, and he raised a finger to his lips, silencing the girl.  
  
To the teenagers' utmost luck, the door re-opened and someone else stepped out. "Hey! What are you two doing out here?" It was Langer. Maybe not their luck.  
  
"Well we found this..." Another brief pause. "And we were looking for its owner."  
  
Leon heard Langer let out a laugh. It was different than his other laughs before, though. It did sound insane. "Look, why don't you two get lost? I'll deal with this."  
  
They heard the pair of footsteps get further and further away, and felt a bit of the tension release, but then Langer's footsteps grew closer to their hiding spot. Leon knew there would not be a second chance this time, so he stepped out from behind the box, Chaltier in hand.  
  
"Hello, Langer."  
  
Langer's eyes glowed with fury when he saw the young swordsman standing in front of him. The boy could almost see the angry memories of the King calling out his name for the promotion flash in his mind. Langer stepped back, pulling out a sword and took a deep breath. Leon glanced to Chelsea quickly so that the man in front of him wouldn't see it. She came closer, and Leon muttered without looking at her, "Go save your love; I'll deal with this fool."  
  
She nodded, and waited for the appropriate time to exit to the room.  
  
"Leon...Magnus..." The hatred was very distinct in the older soldier's voice as he spat out the boy's name. Leon stepped out of the section and into the hallway. "Perhaps today..." the Sergeant's detest for the boy clouded his mind, as Leon quickly moved to the left so Langer's eyes were not on the young girl who slipped by unnoticed.  
  
"Perhaps today we'll find out who the _ real_ Master Swordsman is!"  



	7. Chelsea: Deserted Oberon Shop

**A/N: ** Oooh, & now for the second last chapter...  
  
  
Deserted Oberon Shop (Chapter 7) – Chelsea  
  
  
Chelsea turned behind her briefly to see the two swordsmen raise their weapons to fight, then quickly opened the door to Garr's room and slipped inside. It was an average size room, probably the main area since she could see a dusty counter in front of her, and many old, unused shelves. But she wasn't paying attention to the amount of dust, or little unwanted Oberon products strewn across the floor. She was paying attention to the injured silver-haired man who lay crumpled on the floor near the door.  
  
"Garr!" She cried, minding the loudness of her voice. She ran over to him, and threw her arms around him, happy that he was alive. He grunted and she then let go, finally looking at him.  
  
He was a mess. Blood stained his clothes and face and he had countless bruises and cuts all over. Both his eyes were punched out, and she could see rope marks on his neck. The Prince tried to sit up straight, but closed his eyes in pain. "Chelsea..." He muttered weakly.  
  
She was horrified at his condition. "My god...what did they do to you?" She suddenly felt as though she was going to cry when the realization hit her that it was her fault he was like this. He wouldn't tell them where the amulet was...so they had tried to force it out of him. "Oh no, Garr...this is my fault..." She brushed some matted hair out of his face.  
  
He shook his head and managed to sit up right now. "Look...they would have came...for me...even if it was someone else." He struggled to get the words out. "...Do you still have...the amulet?"  
  
She nodded, pulling it out from behind her shirt. "Yes, they do not know I have it."  
  
"How...could you ever find me?" He frowned, and then started to cough violently, hacking up blood. Chelsea was immediately alarmed and gasped. "Don't mind that now..."  
  
She swallowed hard, and then answered. "I came with that boy, Leon."  
  
He nodded, and then looked around confused. "Where did they all go? Where is Hugo?" He attempted to strand, having great difficulty. Chelsea assisted him and he managed to get on his feet. "And Leon?"  
  
Chelsea shrugged. "I don't know, but Leon is outside battling with Langer."  
  
Garr looked shocked. "That man is crazy. We need to help him!" He started to walk toward the door, but stumbled and started to cough again.  
  
"Garr, you're in no shape to help anyone in a swordfight!" Chelsea ran over to aid him.  
  
The Prince regained his stand, "We have to do something." He managed to get to the door, and pushed it open. They stepped into the hallway, where Leon and the crazy Langer were still attacking each other with their weapons. She could not determine the winner, since they were both savagely swinging their swords, both not noticing the two in their angry frenzy.  
  
Chelsea watched Leon take a careful swing at Langer's head, but the older man caught the attempt, forcing it off with his sword. Leon tried again, and this time Langer slashed his blade wildly, slicing a few of Leon's fingers open as the boy cried out in pain. Langer easily hit the sixteen-year-old's sword away, making the Swordian sail down to the end of the hall.  
  
"Chaltier!" the girl heard Leon cry, looking down the hall after his sword, alarmed. As he did this, Langer took a swing at the boy's head, which he dodged, but the Sergeant moved his foot upwards, kicking Leon in the back and making him fall to the ground on his stomach. Now he was entirely hopeless.  
  
Langer stepped on Leon's back, forcing him to stay on the ground. He nudged his foot under the kid's right shoulder, and flipped him on his back, pointing the tip of his sword to Leon's throat. "Well, I guess we can see who's the Master Swordsman now, can't we?!" Chelsea could hear the insanity in the man's voice, and she too felt hopeless because if she made him aware she was there, he would kill her.  
  
She saw Leon scowl at the man, and he poked the blade further in his neck. "Stand up." he ordered, keeping the sword aimed at his Adam's apple while Leon stood. The boy was powerless without his sword now that Langer had one and he didn't, so Chelsea saw there was nothing he could do. The crazy Sergeant stepped closer to Leon, moving the blade sideways so that the boy could not move. Chelsea watched Leon's expression - still that snotty, somewhat cute, arrogant look. It almost made her smile.  
  
Then strangely, Langer threw away his sword, naively throwing it to the right, landing it a few feet away from Chelsea. She looked at the man first though, and heard him laugh.  
  
"Now where would my honor be if I killed you with a sword while you didn't have one?" But before Leon could react, the crazy man wrapped his hands around the boy's throat, cutting off his air supply. "Die, you stupid kid! Die!" He must have tightened his grip, as Chelsea heard Leon choking, gasping for air.  
  
She saw Leon fall to his knees, tearing at Langer's hands, trying desperately to breathe. Panic shot through her body and the young archer grabbed the sword that had landed in front of her, somewhat unsure what to do with it. She had little experience with swords, but quickly adapted to the new weapon once she heard Leon gag. She charged at the crazy man, letting out a wild battle cry. He snapped his head up; completely surprised at this, and in that second of shock he slightly let go of the grip on Leon's neck. The boy took this to his advantage and gave the Sergeant a kick in the stomach, sending him falling backwards. Chelsea heard Leon coughing, glancing over at him with worry, but saw him get up and run down to get Chaltier.  
  
Chelsea slashed with the sword, cutting Langer open across the chest. He screamed in pain and frustration, then tried to scramble to his feet. But it was too late. In this short time, Leon had managed to retrieve Chaltier, and was coming at him with full force. He raised the Swordian, however as he swung down he missed - a mistake that seemed to be due to drowsiness. With this advantage, Langer rolled out of the way and suddenly stopped, staring at Chelsea.   
  
He jumped to his feet despite the injuries he had, and lunged toward her, a crazy look in his eyes. "You have it!" He shouted. She looked down and noticed the amulet had slipped out again.   
  
"Get away from me!" She screamed and jumped backwards, making Langer stumble. She saw Leon step up behind him, ready to hit him with his sword, but she shook her head at him, an anger rising from within her. He backed away, confused - Chelsea didn't really know what she was doing, but she knew it was right.   
  
Glaring at the evil man who was stumbling towards her with arms outstretched, she focused on the inner hatred and aimed what she felt directly at his head. She could feel the amulet moving, or something - it was a very strange experience. She could almost see the invisible energy flowing out of the charm around her neck and spearing into the crazy Sergeant.  
  
Langer let out a cry and grabbed at the sides of his head. "Argh!! What's the matter with my mind?!" He shouted, falling to his knees. "STOP THIS!" He was screaming now, she could almost feel the pain. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Leon and Garr looking over at her with puzzled expressions, but she continued with her exorcise mind trick.  
  
She watched Langer scream loudly in pain, then stare up at her in bewilderment. "Unimaginable is the power of that...thing..." He managed to croak before he yelled out one last time, then fell to the floor, limp.  
  
Leon rushed over and aimed Chaltier in a threatening pose at Langer, but Chelsea shook her head. "I think he's dead..." She trailed off, staring at what she had done. Leon checked his pulse, and then nodded.  
  
That was the first time she had ever killed a person. And in that...way? She picked up the amulet from the chain and stared at it, this time horror mixed with amazement. What else can this do? As the young girl ran her thumb over the shiny lens jewel, she noticed an intricate design inscribed somewhere in the middle. She hadn't seen it before, and stared harder. She saw an image of something that was outlined with words from a strange language. The picture in the middle was of a large circle - perhaps a gem of some sort - inside a dark room with water flowing all around it. It looked familiar though she couldn't remember seeing the place before.  
  
Chelsea snapped out of her analyzing trance when she heard Garr's voice asking her name. She looked up at him and saw he'd walked over to Langer, and was motioning for her to come over to him.  
  
She complied, and as she approached Garr looked at her gravely. "I guess you've witnessed a bit of what that Amulet can do...perhaps now you see why it should not be in the hands of crazy men..." The Prince motioned to the body on the floor, "but that piece of Atamoni can do a lot worse."  
  
Chelsea swallowed hard and was about to ask Garr a question on the abilities of the amulet, when they heard a loud noise from behind them, a familiar sound of a door slamming. She focused her attention to the figure that emerged from the door's hallway and saw a dark haired man. He looked like he was in his late thirties, with a few white strands in his somewhat long jet-black hair that framed his cold face. He wore a professional-looking business suit, but she noticed a deadly, black sword hanging at his side. She recognized him from the castle. It was President Hugo.  
  
  



	8. Leon: Deserted Oberon Shop

**A/N: ** Here it is....Enjoy.  
  
  
Deserted Oberon Shop (Chapter 8) – Leon  
  
  
Hugo Katrea. His father, the one who would come home everyday dressed in the same style of suit. Black pants, gray top and a white undershirt. Long, graying-black hair always combed neatly. And as of the past ten years, with a dark, black sword. Black-grey-white. Leon always associated those colors to his father. Before he'd gotten the sword, Hugo used to dress in blues, greens, yellows...alive colors. He would smile and laugh often as they ate their expensive suppers at the luxurious dinner table, with his mother and sister. When that sword had come around, everything had changed. His mother and sister left, as well as the colors and laughter. It wasn't right away, however. More over a few months.   
  
First, his sister had left. His mother must have saw what was in store for this family, and his sister was given a Swordian, and sent to Neuestadt with Ilene Rembrandt - one of his father's colleagues.  
  
Then, his mother left, in a violent attack in that same kitchen, at that same table where they had shared so much laughter and happiness. Leon remembered crouching under the desk by the mirror, shaking and crying silently as he watched that dark sword stab into her again and again...  
  
And finally, his father. The vigorous colors leaving-- replaced by black, gray and white suits. Then his sharp black hair aging with streaks of gray and white. All his laughter and smiles gone too...only fake, business needed amusement remained. Even their names were gone. Emilio Katrea was now Leon Magnus, and he was not the son of the new Hugo Gilchrist. Not in his mind, and not in Hugo's.  
  
And now, after years of living with Hugo, Leon stood in front of his father, and in front of the dark blade that tore both of their lives apart. He stared at the President, at the same lavender eyes they both shared, and was still hoping for a small recognition from the old father he used to know. He could see nothing but blank hatred, and Leon knew he could raise the Swordian he held, and finish him right now. But, for some reason he did not, even though he felt so much anger and hatred for what Hugo had done to his life. He just stood there, waiting for the President to speak. Waiting to be told what to do.  
  
"I must thank you for bringing her to me, Leon." His cold voice, manipulative. In a sense, the young Swordsman did bring the amulet to Hugo, even if it wasn't his intention. He truthfully came here to kill Hugo, but now that he knew he could not, the amulet would have to be traded over.  
  
Leon saw Chelsea turn to him and look at him hurtfully. He didn't really care, although he wanted to let her know later on that he didn't use her. Well, let her think that anyway. She frowned as he looked back at her blankly.  
  
The boy could see Hugo looking at the amulet greedily. "Hand it over."  
  
Chelsea glared at the President and stepped back. "No! It's not yours."  
  
As Hugo took a step toward the girl, Garr stepped in front of him, blocking his way. "Look, I don't care if you're the President of the Oberon Corporation, or even if you're the King of Seinegald's aide. You are not going to get that amulet."  
  
At this, Hugo laughed and a shiver of fear ran down Leon's spine. He knew that laugh, and it was a thousand times different than the friendly laugh he'd recalled as a child. This was from that dark sword, Bersellius. Leon wasn't sure if he wanted to kill Hugo or destroy that sword. Both, maybe. He watched Garr reach for his sword when Hugo made a step toward Chelsea. Leon stayed back, obeying his father's silent commands. He bit his lip as he saw Hugo pull Bersellius, from his sheath at his waist.  
  
"I know you don't want me to use this, Garr..." Hugo sneered at the Prince as he unsheathed the full sword. Leon winced at the sight of it. So black, so evil. It was a curved, dead-black blade with red designs on it. The stink of evil and hatred emanated from the sword, and brought a horrible nostalgia that made Leon turn away. Every time he saw that evil weapon he remembered his mother. That sword had taken her away from him. He couldn't forget it.  
  
Leon saw Hugo step toward Garr and Chelsea and he sighed inwardly. He closed his eyes, hating what he would have to do. He turned to Chelsea and looked at her innocent green eyes.  
  
"Hand over the amulet, if you wish to live."   
  
He wasn't siding with Hugo, just not rebelling against that sword. He saw the expression of anger and betrayal on the girl's face as she stepped backwards.  
  
"Do you really think I'll give this up?" The fury was clear in her eyes, burning like the fire she had let out at their campsite.  
  
Leon shook his head, almost sadly. "I warned you a long time ago about that amulet. Don't you see Hugo will just kill you if you don't?"  
  
Hugo walked up to Leon and smiled, a horrible smile. "Yes, girl. Now, give it to me. You are in bad shape...your Garr is injured and all you have is a bow and arrow, while I hold the almighty Bersellius."  
  
Chelsea looked back and forth at Leon and the President. "Yes, and I have the amulet! You won't get it!"  
  
Leon watched her frown and then seem to concentrate. He knew what she was trying to do and turned to Hugo, "She'll use the amulet. We should kill her now."  
  
Hugo shook his head. "That would be useless. We couldn't get it from her; she needs to take it off voluntarily. I have a better plan."  
  
The President jerked the sword in his hand and Leon felt a flare of something go through the air. Garr suddenly cried out in pain and dropped to his knees. Hugo repeated this process and the boy felt a sharp pain in his head, and suddenly wondered if Hugo and struck him with the blade. He reached up to touch his forehead, but he was overtaken by an even more powerful shock of pain and was sent down to his knees as he screamed in agony. It felt as though the blade had gone straight through his head!  
  
He managed to lift his hand through the unbelievable pain and touch his head, but felt no wound. The pain was unbearable, it was far worse than any injury he has received from any battle.   
  
He could hear Hugo and Chelsea talking, but couldn't focus on what they were saying. He could tell it was angry words, and violent actions, but he just couldn't think with all this pain. His world swam, and he felt so dizzy. Leon wondered if he was screaming, but all he could hear was a loud buzzing. So loud, so sharp, it hurts...his vision started to turn from liquid to waves of color, and he could see black dots everywhere. His head felt as though it was going to explode, and then he felt something else jab into his stomach. He couldn't concentrate on anything, only barely breathing.  
  
The black dots were beginning to expand, and they became so big he couldn't see any more color. Then, he felt the hard, cold floor of the dirty shop and all of a sudden was reminded of the cold, marble floor of the mansion. That same sword, striking him on the back of the head. Falling to the ground, dizzy but crying and scrambling to hide. Under a dresser. What was that sound? His mother? Screaming? Why was his father yelling so loudly? He remembered heard a loud scream, blood, and then saw a black ant crawling across the floor of the dining room. He'd watched the ant crawl out from the dresser, and over to where his mother lay. In a pool of...blood?   
  
The memories flashed through his mind like a blink of an eye, and then he was back on the floor of the Oberon shop, seeing a black-gray-white nothing, and feeling the dirty floor underneath him. Slowly, he began to feel nothing too, the loud noise from before faded off to a dull buzzing, and then...silence.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The first thing he felt was being shoved roughly, and he opened his eyes, staring at a wooden ceiling. _ Wood._ He thought, searching through his head, trying to concentrate on something. He felt so dizzy, and he was moving back and forth. They were still pushing him to get up.  
  
_ You must wake up, young master..._  
  
Chaltier. He recognized that voice, anyway. "Yes Chal, I will get up. Just stop shaking me..." He felt as though he was going to vomit from them moving him so much. Left, right, left, right, back left, back right. Holy Atamoni, it was like the goddamn army again. He wished they would let him get up on his own...  
  
"Alright, alright!" He collected some energy and sat up. He frowned immediately as he realized that no one else was in the room. Then it hit him, and he seen the portholes on the side of the room. He was on a boat. That explained the rocking movement.  
  
_ Shaking...?_  
  
"Never mind..." Leon rose to his feet, looking around at the room he was in. It appeared to be a storage room, but there was nothing in it except two broken crates. He picked up Chaltier and sheathed him, noticing he was fully dressed in what he had been recently wearing.  
  
Wearing...where? He frowned to recall his location before he'd woke up, and he remembered the promotion. Garr's interrogation. Oberon shop...  
  
Oh. Then he remembered it all.  
  
He looked down at his Swordian. "Hugo and Chelsea? Garr? Where are they, and what has happened?" He ordered information.  
  
_ Perhaps you should exit this room?_  
  
Leon nodded, headed over to the standard navy door and stepped through. He was greeted by a maze of other doors, and after analyzing them all; he decided to go into the one in front of his. He entered that room and found Chelsea sitting at a desk, crying. He could hear her sobbing loudly and imagined she hadn't heard him come in.  
  
He walked over to the desk and stared at the younger girl, stunned at her action. He hadn't witnessed a lot of crying and especially weeping like that.  
  
"What's wrong with you?" He asked, still regaining his cold voice. He saw her look up at him in surprise, then relief.  
  
He let her have a few minutes to stop crying while he waited impatiently with his arms folded. She calmed down to sniffling, and then stood and turned to him. "I'm sorry. I'm glad that you're awake..." She reached over to the desk and shut a book she had opened. It seemed to be scribbles, and was tear-stained. He wondered what it was, but knew not to pry.  
  
Leon flicked the hair out of his eyes and looked back at the girl in front of him. "Well, what happened? I don't remember anything except feeling as though I was going to die. And why were you crying?"  
  
Chelsea nodded, and walked over to the small porthole in her wall. Leon followed. "Well, after you and Garr blacked out, Hugo told me that if I did not give up the Amulet, he would kill you both." She looked down and Leon noticed that her Amulet was gone.  
  
"You fool! You gave it up?"  
  
She turned around to him with the angry eyes again. "I had no choice! There was no way I could let him kill you two, and he promised me he would not harm any of us so long as I gave him it."  
  
"And where is Garr now? You shouldn't trust people like that! And especially Hugo...don't you realize he could have killed all three of us after he got the amulet? I don't see why he didn't." Leon felt like teaching the girl in front of him a good lesson with his sword for being so naive.  
  
"Well, maybe you're right...I mean, he might have killed us if your sword didn't do that thing..."  
  
Leon looked down at Chaltier. "What thing?"  
  
"I don't know. It was some green-light spell, or something. I haven't seen it before, but that circle in the middle of your sword broke after it was done."  
  
The boy pulled Chaltier out of his sheath, and he did notice the Aura Disc was gone. "Chal, what is she talking about?"  
  
_ A spell I learned in the Aeth'er Wars. Don't worry about it, young master._  
  
The Master Swordsman frowned, but continued on with his questioning. "And then what happened?"  
  
"After that, Hugo left with the Amulet, and while I was trying to keep you two alive, a couple Generals came back and they helped me take you guys back to Darilsheid—where we're going now." She paused, and then sighed. "The Generals had already been there, and it turns out that Hugo told the King that Langer was the problem with all of this. The King believes that Langer is the evil one, so basically Hugo got away with this whole thing. He won't have anything from us."  
  
Leon thought about this. He figured once he got back to Darilshied, everything would be the same. Hugo would be one step closer to his plan for this world, and everyone will continue worshipping him. He felt a sudden loss, since he realized he had not accomplished what he planned on doing. He couldn't kill his father. He could not even go against him.   
  
"What about Garr? Won't he say anything about the interrogation…where they beat him up?" Leon frowned…this was strange.  
  
Chelsea shook her head. "They bribed him in the hospital, they already told the King it was all Langer. Basically, he thinks Langer did the whole thing and the rest of the group was trying to stop that man." Leon growled at this. Hugo did know what he was doing.  
  
He looked at Chelsea when she sniffled again. "Why were you crying?" He demanded.  
  
She looked back at him and shrugged. "I was thinking about things..." He noticed her glance at the book on the table.  
  
"What is in that book on the table?"  
  
She sighed, and gazed out the porthole at the endless sea, and turned back to him. "Just art. I guess I like to draw. I got used of it because living in a wood all my life tends to bore me. Want to see some?"  
  
Leon shrugged, and followed her over to the desk. She opened the book and he saw a picture of a room, floored with water running over green tiles. There was a big circle in the middle--it resembled the Eye of Atamoni and it was located besides an opening in the sacred room, overlooking a great forest.  
  
This picture startled him, only a few knew about this holy room, and it's contents. "How did you know about this room?" He was shocked at how much it looked exactly like the Straylize Temple, where the Eye of Atamoni was kept.  
  
"Oh, I don't know. It was carved on the inside of the Amulet." She flipped over the page and he saw an elaborate sketch of Garr, and then another. He had to admit these drawings were really good; it did look like the Prince. She'd even captured his silver hair, always messy and in his face. Then, she turned the page and he saw a picture of himself. This took him by surprise, but he was completely astonished at the remarking similarity to himself, and the amount work put into it. She'd drawn it so well it seemed he was staring into a mirror.  
  
He looked closer at the picture, even noticing how she'd carefully shaded his eyes, and making them give off the cold exterior he always kept. He looked at Chelsea.  
  
"Why did you draw a picture of...me?"  
  
Leon was startled when she laughed. "I don't know. I just draw things that I see."  
  
"Oh." It was weird that she had actually put this much thought into his picture. No other girl he knew had actually sat down and done something impressive like that…especially not that fool, Anatola. He suddenly thought about the picture hanging in the mansion back at his house. His mother...he often thought about the artist that had spent all that time drawing her face, and now someone had done that for him.  
  
He noticed Chelsea looking at him intently, and it made him feel weird because he was actually letting her see how much the picture meant to him, or she meant to him, so he stepped back. "Well, those pictures are good. I think I should go on the deck now. I need to talk to the Captain."  
  
She shrugged, and as he left the room he saw her grin and it sort of irritated him, kind of like she knew something about him that he did not. But he was thinking about the picture of the room, as well. That was strange...only a few people knew about the location of the Eye of Atamoni. King Sark Kelvin didn't even know about it. How could she? Inscribed on the Amulet...maybe.  
  
He reached the deck by going through the passage he'd become used to from being on many ships in his lifetime. He'd gone with Hugo to many meetings and such, to other countries on boat. As he stepped on top, he saw they were approaching Phandaria. The chilly air and chunks of ice in the water gave that away.  
  
Leon walked over to the side of the ship, staring out at the vast, always moving sea. It never stopped, rolling in and out—all over the world, again and again. Somehow he knew that he would never be able to destroy his father. He would always live in the regret that, at one point, he had the chance and failed. He felt the memories fall into his mind as flashbacks of his mother and sister hit him, and he felt so guilty. His mother had died, without being avenged.   
  
He knew that when he returned to Phandaria, they would drop off Chelsea and then return to Darilsheid, where he would return to the mansion, Hugo, and Anatola. Everything would go back to normal and he would continue assisting his father in his plans. Now that he had the Amulet of Atamoni, Hugo would resume this plan he had.  
  
Leon then raised his eyes to the clouds. They were gray, and the pure snow was falling from them. In Phandaria, the snow never stopped. And it was always white. White snow falling from the gray clouds onto his black hair.  
  
_ Black-gray-white._  
  
  


The End

  
  
**A/N:** Alright, the ending wasn't too good, but tell me what you think! There. Two full months of writing and now that I look back on it I don't know how I did it. Please review! Think it's too long? Too boring? Too cliched? I wanna know :) 


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